A Sorta Fairytale
by vargagirl
Summary: Four years ago, Emma divorced Regina and moved to Chicago. When Henry's tenth birthday brings her back to Storybrooke, she finds that maybe her relationship with Regina can be salvaged after all. Swan Queen AU.
1. Where You End, Where I Begin

**A/N: **I should not be posting this when A Thousand Oceans is so up in the air, but I'm apparently doing it anyway. If you're wondering about Oceans, there's a note in my profile about it. And I don't know if this has been done before in the fandom (it seems like someone would've already gone there), but I started this last January and decided to finally start posting it. Hope you like it.

A few things to note: The Curse doesn't exist. Regina isn't really the Evil Queen. There will be no mentions of fairy tales being real. And Henry loves both of his mothers unconditionally.

* * *

Emma never wanted to be an absent parent. She had grown up without parents and always promised herself that she'd be the best mom to Henry that she could be. She never wanted him to have to feel any of the things that she felt when she was younger. She wanted him to have everything, a loving home with a loving family and everything his heart desired. She wanted the perfect life for him.

She wondered if he had the perfect life now. It had been... a long time since she last talked to him. After the break up with Regina, and then the move to Chicago, Emma did her best to try to stay in contact with him, calling him at least once a week to check in. But the longer she stayed in Chicago, the less it seemed that she was needed in Maine. The phone calls stopped altogether sometime last year with Emma telling herself it was better for Henry that way.

She didn't know how everything happened. The break up with Regina was a blur, even though she knew their downfall started years before it was finalized. Moving to Chicago she rated as one of the biggest mistakes of her life. It killed her, living a thousand miles away from her son and the life she promised to give him when he was born. She knew that not seeing Henry every day would be excruciating, but constantly fighting with Regina right in front of the kid wasn't doing him any favors either. Emma knew she had to get away and took the first opportunity to do so, telling herself she was doing it for the right reasons.

Her life in Chicago left a lot to be desired. In the nearly four years that she had lived there, she hadn't tried to become a part of the community. She had lived in the same apartment for three of those years, but still had most of her things in boxes. Even though she had tried to convince herself that it was her new home, when she thought of that word, the only thing she could see was that white house with the long sidewalk leading to the front door that she insisted they paint red, despite Regina's adamant protests. Even if Emma never lived there again, that was her home. Nothing else could compare.

She wondered what was going on in that house right now. She glanced to the clock, finding it was nearly seven in the evening. Regina and Henry were probably sitting down to dinner. She closed her eyes for just a moment and gave in to fantasy, pretending that she was there with them, complimenting Regina on the perfect dinner that she cooked then listening to Henry talk animatedly about the upcoming science fair. But the moment passed and Emma opened her eyes again, shaking her head. _You did this to yourself,_ she reminded herself. _You did this._

It was entirely her fault. The break up wasn't; it was a joint effort between her and Regina, but the move to Chicago was her own brilliant idea. She could still see the look on Regina's face when she told her ex that she was moving, a look somewhere in between shock and disdain. Regina had been furious with her, saying that she was abandoning Henry, shirking her parental duties. Emma refused to see it that way, even though she agreed with Regina now. She did abandon Henry, in almost the same way that her parents had abandoned her.

His birthday was tomorrow. Her little boy was turning ten. She hadn't seen him since he was seven on her one and only trip back to Maine since the move to Chicago. For just a moment, she wondered if he even remembered what she looked like. She felt a stabbing pain in her chest. But it's Henry, she reminded herself, the smartest kid she's ever known. He wouldn't let himself forget her. That thought didn't give her much comfort though either.

Glancing at the sun that was slowly setting in her rear-view mirror, she promised herself that tomorrow was going to be different. She was going to start fixing everything that she'd broken. No matter what, she was going to make things right with her son, and maybe, she could start to fix things with Regina as well. She didn't ever expect them to be as close as they used to be, but she hoped they could at least try to be friends, if only for Henry's sake.

The thoughts of Regina made her chest ache. She ignored it, pretending that it was only a longing for the familiar instead of for a very particular brunette. She hadn't been in a relationship since Regina. She was so busy with her work that relationships were far from her mind. She would resort to the occasional one night stand, but then only to scratch the itch, never for anything more. That was the way that she liked it, she reminded herself. She's always done better on her own.

But that mentality had hurt the people she cared most about, she reminded herself. It was useful, protecting herself, but it also got her where she was now, alone and full of regret for the pain that she'd caused. She hoped she hadn't hurt Henry too much. He was an amazingly resilient kid but having one of your parents walk away like she did? That had to have hurt him bad.

She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, willing herself not to cry. That was why she was doing this, for him, because she had to make everything right with him. It was going to hurt like hell, but she had to do it for her son.

She took in another breath and read the sign as she drove by it. "Welcome to Storybrooke," she whispered.

...

Emma stopped short before knocking on the door, pulling her hand away instead. The door that used to be a cherry red now was snow white, a reminder of all of the things that had changed since the last time she had been in Storybrooke. She knew she should have called first, to give Henry, and more importantly Regina, some kind of warning. But ever since the idea to come back had popped into her head, she never really believed that she would go through with it. She always thought she would wind up chickening out before she ever saw her son.

It took her two hours of driving around the little town before she could bring herself to turn down the street she had been skillfully avoiding. She went through all of the reasons why it was a bad idea to show up unannounced, then all of the reasons why she couldn't run away again, not this time. As she parked her car on the street in front of the house, she knew that she was doing the right thing, but that didn't make it easier.

A sound from behind startled her. She turned to see the neighbors across the street getting out of their car. Even though she couldn't remember who used to live in that house, she knew she'd never seen these people before. After they disappeared into their house, Emma looked around the neighborhood, taking in the details illuminated by the street lights. It was getting pretty late, somewhere around nine o'clock. It was almost late enough to convince her to come back tomorrow, but she knew that if she didn't do this now, she would never come back.

She turned back to the door, raised her fist to the white wood and knocked. Taking in a deep breath to steady her nerves, she stepped backwards a bit, preparing herself for the brutal reunion that she knew was about to take place with Regina. The door opened. Emma's heart stopped in her chest.

Regina stood in the doorway, eyes wide in surprise. She was dressed in a dark gray skirt suit, looking every bit as beautiful as Emma remembered. Emma crammed her hands deep into the pockets of her leather jacket, suddenly feeling incredibly intimidated. "Hi." She said, trying to sound strong, but she knew it didn't come off that way. Her voice seemed to snap Regina out of her stupor.

"What are you doing here?" She asked coldly.

"I came to see Henry. I wanted to be here for his birthday."

"Why? You didn't even bother to call for the last one." Regina snapped, taking a step forward and closing the door halfway behind her.

She winced at the memory of Henry's last birthday. "That was a mistake, a big mistake. And I'm sorry-"

"Why should I even let you see him?"

"I'm his mother." She answered, earning a mirthless laugh from Regina.

"Right. Because a real mother would go over a year without contacting her son." Regina said softly but bitterly. "Don't give me that, Miss Swan."

After the break up, Regina had reverted back to using a more formal version of Emma's name. It always made Emma cringe internally, as though nothing had ever happened between them. "Regina, please-" She began to beg but froze when she heard Henry's voice from inside.

"Mom, who's at the door?" He asked, his voice coming from just inside the foyer. That was when Emma caught sight of her son's face through the window next to the door. "Mama!" He yelled. A moment later, he pushed past Regina and ran out of the house. Emma bent down and caught him in a hug, picking him up and spinning him around. Once Emma put him back on the ground and looked at him, he asked, "what are you doing here?"

"I came to see you, kiddo. If I remember right, somebody's birthday is tomorrow." Emma said with an impish grin, earning a huge smile from Henry. "I thought I'd come surprise you."

"I've missed you." He said suddenly, sadness creeping into his eyes.

Her heart ached. "I've missed you, too, kid. More than you can imagine." She said and cupped his cheek with her hand. "I love you so much."

Just like that, the sadness was gone. "I love you, too, mama." He said and hugged her again. His arms around her neck, she looked up to Regina standing on the porch. Her arms were crossed over her chest protectively, anger burning in her eyes. Emma pulled back and looked to Henry.

"What are your big plans for tomorrow?" She asked.

"We're having a party at two. Will you come?"

"Of course I'll come. And I might have a present or two for a special someone."

"Really?" He asked.

"Really."

"Henry, that's enough." Regina finally said from the porch, earning both Emma and Henry's attention. "It's time for bed."

"But mama just got here."

"You'll see her tomorrow, alright? But right now it's bedtime. Go upstairs and get ready. I'll be there in a few minutes." Regina said, her tone softer than the way she spoke with Emma earlier.

Henry turned to look at Emma. "You'll be here tomorrow at two?"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." She said as Henry's arms wrapped around her again. "Now, go on, get to bed and your birthday will be here before you know it, ok?"

"Ok." He said reluctantly. "Night."

"See you tomorrow." He smiled wide at her and hugged her again then headed inside, past a still unamused Regina. They both watched him head up the stairs and disappear. Regina turned back to Emma.

"I don't know what you think you're doing here, but for Henry's sake, don't give him any false expectations that this visit is going to change anything," she said, the coldness back in her voice.

"What are you talking about?" Emma asked, sticking her hands back into her pockets.

Regina took a step forward, almost towering over Emma. "You haven't called in over a year. Don't make him think that this visit from you means that you're going to be in his life more. You and I both know that you'll be here a few days and when you go back to wherever it is you came from, you will forget about Henry. Don't pretend like you're going to start being more involved in his life, when we both know that you aren't."

Emma looked away, surprised at how much pain she felt from the accuracy of Regina's words. "Look, Regina," she started, taking in a deep breath, forcing herself to look at her ex-wife again. "I know I've made a lot of mistakes. But I'm here now and I want to fix them. I don't want it to be like this any more. I want to be a part of Henry's life more than anything, and I know my behavior hasn't shown that, but I'm going to do better. I'm going to be the type of parent that he deserves to have. Starting now, I'm going to be better."

Regina stared at her for a long moment in silence, eyes void of any emotion. "The party is at two. If you want to take him out to lunch beforehand, be here at noon."

"Then I'll be here at noon." Emma said, a grateful smile on her lips.

"But so help me," Regina took another step closer, her eyes locked with Emma's, "if you hurt him again, I will destroy you if it is the last thing I do."

Emma swallowed hard.

Regina turned and stepped back over the threshold, wrapping her fingers around the doorknob. "See you at noon." She said over her shoulder and closed the door before Emma had a chance to respond.

Emma took a few steps backward, still looking up at the house. She noticed movement from upstairs. Henry was standing in his bedroom window looking down at her, a smile on his face. She grinned back up at him and waved, earning her a wave back. Holding eye contact with him, she silently promised to never hurt him again. A few moments later he disappeared.

She headed back towards her car, feeling a little shorter than when she first got to the house.


	2. When You're Putting The Damage On

**A/N:** A few more things to note: this will kinda follow the events of the show, but only loosely since the premise is obviously quite AU. The story's starting out kinda angsty, but then it will turn into more of a romance. The focus is definitely Swan Queen, but Henry is a big part of this story, especially at the beginning... And the title is from a Tori Amos song.

Thanks a million for the reviews and follows. I love to hear what you guys think, so don't be shy :)

* * *

Emma looked up to Henry from her menu, still surprised at how big her son had gotten. He caught her watching and tilted his head.

"You keep staring at me."

"Sorry. I just- you're so grown up." She said, feeling the familiar sting of tears.

Henry shook his head in disagreement, "I'm only ten."

"I know. But the last time I saw you-" there was that chest pain again, "you were seven."

He seemed to understand what she was saying and nodded. Ruby interrupted and took their orders, giving Emma a wink as she took her menu. When she was gone, Henry asked innocently, "why has it been so long since you've come home?"

Emma took in a deep breath, knowing her answer wasn't going to be enough to satisfy his curiosity. "I don't know, kiddo. Things between your mom and I aren't great, but I shouldn't have let that keep me away for so long. I should've kept in touch with you more. I messed up and I'm sorry."

"It's okay." He said and took a sip from his milkshake. "I know you have stuff in Chicago that's important."

"Hey," she leaned over the table, wanting to make sure he heard her words, and placed her hands on top of his, "you are the most important thing to me in this world, ok?" He nodded. "Nothing means more to me than you. And from now on, I'm going to do better. I'm going to call you all the time to check in, and I expect you to talk my ear off every time, ok?"

"Yeah." He looked down to the table, a marked shift in his mood.

"What's wrong?"

He looked up, but his eyes refused to meet hers, lingering instead on the tabletop in front of him. "When are you leaving?"

She frowned. She hadn't thought that far into the future. "I don't really know. In a couple of days, four, maybe five. Why?"

His gaze met hers. "I don't want you to go."

She closed her eyes briefly, feeling that ache again. "I know, buddy." She gave him a forced smile and added, "I don't really want to go back, but that's where my life is now."

"But I thought I was the most important thing to you?"

"You are. You absolutely are."

"Then why can't you stay here?"

She hesitated, not really sure how to answer the question, then said, "it's complicated."

"So uncomplicate it. Stay here. Please?"

His big eyes stared at her, wide with hope. She felt so much- guilt, sorrow, pain- but couldn't seem to come up with a response. "Henry, I would really love to stay with you, but I just can't. I can't stay here."

His face dropped and he looked down to the table.

She swallowed hard and hoped that one day he would understand.

...

She knew that this was asking for trouble.

All throughout Henry's party, she and Regina had coexisted peacefully. For the most part, they avoided each other- or rather Regina avoided her- but when they were forced to talk with one another, they were oddly civil. Emma knew that Regina hated appearing anything but collected, especially to the people of Storybrooke, so she played along, trying to make the party as painless as possible for everyone involved. But standing at the door to the kitchen, the party long over, she knew that the truce that existed between her and Regina could fall apart at any moment. Once the crowds were gone, nothing was forcing them to maintain outward appearances.

She knew that forcing Regina into a conversation with her could backfire. It could turn into World War III if she wasn't careful. She knew she should just go back into the living room and continue playing with Henry, but she couldn't walk away. She had to talk to Regina. Pushing open the door to the kitchen, she mentally prepared herself for the possibility of a fight.

Regina was standing at the sink, washing the remaining dishes from the party, her back to Emma. Emma stopped just inside the door and took the opportunity to watch her ex. She had been stealing glances across the room all throughout Henry's party, but this Regina was different than the one from earlier. This Regina wasn't playing a part. She wasn't Henry's mom, she wasn't town mayor or the perfect hostess. She was just Regina, an older version of the woman that Emma fell in love with some fifteen years ago.

She'd missed this. She'd missed Regina more than she'd ever let herself admit. Regina was the only person that Emma had ever let break through her walls. She was the only person that Emma had ever let get close, the only person that Emma had ever fallen in love with. She wanted to pretend like the past was in the past, but being back in that house again, she could feel all of those old feelings threatening to return.

When Regina was washing her hands, Emma walked closer, her footsteps echoing through the silent kitchen. Regina's eyes met hers for a brief second before turning back towards the running water.

"Hi," Emma said softly, her heartbeat pulsing in her ears.

"Hello." Regina looked at her suspiciously. "What are you doing in here? I thought you were playing with Henry."

"Yeah, I was. But he was kinda kicking my ass on the Xbox so I gave up." She tried giving Regina a smile but the brunette turned away before she could see it.

"Well, giving up is what you do best." Regina muttered, grabbing a dishtowel off of the counter beside her to dry her hands.

Emma winced at the comment but decided it was best to ignore it. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you."

"I don't think there's anything we need to talk about." Regina said and started to turn away. Emma reached out, her hand gently grabbing Regina's upper arm, stopping Regina's movement. Brown eyes snapped up to meet Emma's.

She quickly pulled her hand away, saying, "I wanted to apologize."

Regina studied her for a long moment, causing Emma to shift nervously, then asked, "what for?"

"Everything. Everything I ever did that hurt you and Henry. You both deserve so much more from me, and I let you down. I am so sorry for fucking everything up. I'm sorry for being a disappointment, but I am going to change, Regina, I promise you. I'm not going to disappear again."

They stared at each other for a long moment, the emotion in Regina's eyes unreadable. She looked away first, back to the door to the dining room, and said, "I'm not the one you need to apologize to." She started again towards the exit, trying to end their conversation.

"I already apologized to him. At lunch." Regina looked back to her in surprise. "And I'm going to keep apologizing to you until you forgive me." She said the last part much less confidently than she had wanted to.

Regina turned towards her fully, eyes studying her. "I don't care what you do. My only concern is for my son. You're only here for a few days, so why are you wasting your time caring about what I think about you? You should be focusing on Henry, not me."

"I am focusing on him, but I'd still like for things to be better between us."

Regina's jaw set, her gaze hardening. "Things aren't going to change between us. For Henry's sake, I will be civil with you, but that's where it ends. You and I are not friends. We will never be friends. The only reason why we are still in contact is because of Henry. Am I clear?"

Emma swallowed hard. Finding her voice, she let out a rigid, "yes."

Regina gave her a slight nod and headed out into the dining room, the door swinging shut behind her. Emma sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"That went well," she whispered.


	3. Pick Out Your Cloud

**A/N: **Ok, a few more notes because I can't seem to remember them all at once: Emma's not 28 in this story, or else that would make Regina a cradle robber and we're not going there. So she's 34ish, a little younger than Regina... And this is being written for a prompt table on LJ, so the scenes are supposed to be separate entities. So if it feels a little bit disjointed, like there are slight time jumps, that's why. It will be a complete story, not a collection of scenes, it just might not flow perfectly from scene to scene with every single chapter. But every scene does have a definite purpose.**  
**

And thank you all for the awesome response to this story. Gives me motivation to keep kicking out chapters. Hope you like this one.

Edited a little towards the bottom: Apparently someone messed up when she was posting this chapter. That's why you don't update stories at four in the morning. Sorry guys.

* * *

"That one looks like a rabbit."

Emma looked to where Henry was pointing in the sky and nodded, surprised at the rabbit ears and fluffy tail in the sky. "It does." She turned her head to the side slightly, getting a better angle on the rabbit cloud. "It _really_ does." Glancing back to her son, she watched as Henry scanned the sky above them, searching for any more familiar shapes. They used to cloud gaze often before she moved to Chicago, spending countless summer afternoons laying in the backyard, staring at the sky and letting their imaginations run wild.

"Oh, and there's a castle."

Emma looked back to the sky and the direction of Henry's finger, but the only thing she could see were clouds that looked like clouds. "Where?"

"There-" he pointed to one area, "that's the base of the castle, and those-" he moved his finger higher, "those are the towers."

"Oh, I see it." She did see it. Kind of. If she squinted a little, it did look vaguely like the castles in the fairy tale books that she used to read to Henry when he was little. She got an ache in her chest at the thought of all of the time they used to spend together before her move.

"I have my own castle, you know." Henry said quietly.

"You do?" Emma propped herself up on her elbows and looked down at him. His eyes stayed focused on the sky.

"Yeah. It's right off the harbor. I go there when I need to think."

Even though she was the one that gave birth to him, Emma could see that Henry was more like Regina than herself. She always fought to keep away her thoughts, preferring to drown them out with alcohol and loud music, but Regina loved the silence. She needed the silence in a way that Emma could never really understand, a trait that seemed to have been passed on to their son. "It sounds nice."

"It is."

Emma glanced back to the house. Regina was watching them from a window in the kitchen. Their eyes locked for a moment before Regina pulled away and disappeared into the shadows. Emma stared at the spot where her ex had been for a while, thinking over how much she wished things could be like they used to be. She was pulled out of her thoughts by Henry's voice. "What?" She asked.

"Mom's mad at you, isn't she?"

The question startled her. She and Regina had managed to be incredibly civil, but still Henry was one perceptive kid. "She's not mad at me. She's just disappointed."

"Why?" His eyes met hers.

"Because I disappeared from your life for so long. And she should be disappointed in me. I'm pretty disappointed with myself." She added the last part quietly.

"But things are gonna be different from now on, right?"

"I promised you they would be, didn't I?" She gave him a smile as she ran her fingers through the hair covering his forehead.

"Yeah." He paused. "So why can't she just let it go?"

"It's not that easy. I hurt you, being gone for so long, and your mom needs to protect you. She just wants me to be more responsible with my relationship with you, that's all."

"Oh."

Emma laid back down as the silence surrounded them. Henry was deep in thought, his eyes squinting in the same way that Emma's do when she's busy thinking about something. She hoped that the tension between Regina and herself hadn't been hurting Henry. He was a tough kid, but having his parents being on bad terms couldn't be easy for him.

He looked over to her and said, "I don't like it when you two are like this."

Her chest ached. "Me either, kid... Me either."

...

It was her last night in Storybrooke. Regina had let her have Henry for the evening, making Emma promise to have him back by eight thirty. It was a quarter past nine and they were still some three blocks away from the mayoral mansion. Henry was chatting animatedly from the passenger seat about some comic book he had gotten the day before, completely unaware of how desperate Emma was to get him home. Rolling two stop signs, she prayed that the law enforcement in the town was busy somewhere else with a box of donuts or twinkies or something.

When they got to the house, she threw the car into park and turned to Henry, just in time to see the front door of the mansion open. "Oh shi-oot." She winced at her language, giving Henry an apologetic smile, even though she was sure he had no idea what had almost happened.

"What?" He asked, a hint of a smile on his lips.

"Uh, your mom." She motioned towards the house, where Regina was now standing in the front doorway, hand perched on her hip. "You need to get going."

"You're not going to come inside?"

She knew she should. Staying in her car was the cowardly thing to do, but the last thing she wanted was to end a perfect day on a very painful note. Forcing a smile at Henry, she nodded. "Of course I am." She unbuckled her seat belt and slowly got out of the car, thinking through the best way to apologize to Regina for keeping Henry so late.

She followed her son up the path to the house, cramming her hands deep into her pockets. When she reached the front porch, she stopped, watching Henry pass Regina on his way into the house. Regina's gaze met her own. She shivered at the anger burning in Regina's eyes. She was screwed.

"Mama?"

She looked towards Henry, offering her son a smile. "I'll see you in the morning, buddy. We'll go get breakfast before I leave." She prayed that Regina would allow it, knowing it was dangerous to make a promise to Henry without consulting Regina first. Especially considering the pile of deep shit she was currently in.

"Can you tuck me in?"

Her heart tugged in her chest at just how young he seemed in that moment. He was long past the age of getting tucked in for bed, but he wanted her to do it anyway. She turned her attention towards Regina, silently asking her ex for permission. Narrowing her eyes, Regina stepped out of the doorway and, with a wave of her hand, motioned for Emma to enter the house.

She took in a deep breath and went inside, passing Regina as she stepped into the foyer. She gave the brunette a grateful smile that went unacknowledged and followed Henry up the stairs. It took a few minutes for him to get ready for bed, but once he slid in between the covers, she sat down beside him.

"I've had a great couple of days with you."

"Can't you stay a few more?" His eyes pleaded with her for more time.

She felt the lump form in her throat. "I can't, kid. I'm sorry, but we'll have time together tomorrow before I go. We can go to Granny's for breakfast and you can get as many pancakes as you want." She offered him a smile, but he didn't return it.

"Okay." He settled down into bed, turning on his side to get comfortable.

Leaning over him, she placed a kiss on his temple. "I love you," she whispered.

"Love you, too." As his eyes fell shut, the corners of his mouth turned up just enough to make Emma's heart swell.

"Sleep well."

Standing up, she went to his bedroom door and flipped off the light switch. Turning in the door frame, she took one last glance then closed the door quietly. She went to the railing of the hallway and looked down into the foyer, finding Regina waiting below for her. Taking in a deep breath, she promised herself that she wasn't going to fight back. She was going to let Regina say whatever she had to say, and she wasn't going to challenge it. It was her last night in town. She could get out of Storybrooke without having a full-blown fight with her ex.

When she reached the bottom stair, Regina turned towards her. "You were forty-five minutes late," she said, her jaw clenching tightly.

Emma nodded slowly. "We lost track of time. I'm sorry."

Taking a step closer, Regina's voice lowered. "I thought you were going to start being responsible? That you were going to stop being a child and actually be a parent to Henry? That promise lasted what- three days?"

Emma winced. "You're right, and I'm sorry-"

"Your apologies have gotten really old." Regina moved even closer, invading Emma's personal space. "And the thing that I can't figure out is why in the hell didn't you call me and tell me that you were running late? You have a cell phone. I assume you still remember the phone number for the house that you lived in for almost five years."

"Regina-"

"No, you don't get to talk. Not only did you not call me, but you didn't answer your phone when I called you. Do you have any idea how worried I have been? Thinking that something could've happened to Henry?"

"This is Storybrooke, Regina, not Boston!" She threw her hands up in frustration. "This town has what- a crime rate of zero? What the hell could have possibly have happened to Henry here? After all, isn't that why you moved us to this goddamned town in the first place?"

Rage flared in Regina's eyes. "So this is my fault?" She nearly yelled.

"What? No! Dammit!" She took in a deep breath, trying to cool herself off. Speaking in an even tone, she continued, "no, this was my fault, alright? Everything is always my fault. You're the good guy and I'm the bad guy, I get that. I'm fine with that. But for once can you just not blow every little thing out of proportion? We were late. That was my fault. But Henry's upstairs asleep now, everything's fine, and I have apologized, so can you just relax?"

Regina seemed to shift at her words. "Relax... You want me to relax?" Her voice was eerily calm, a stark contrast to the way she had practically yelled at Emma just moments before, but her eyes still sparkled with anger. Shaking her head, she continued, "I can't relax, because I am all that Henry has. _I_ have to worry about his safety because there's no one else here to do it. _I_ am the one responsible for his life. _I_ am the one who has to take care of him if something goes wrong, and you want me to relax? Parents- _real_ parents- don't relax. They worry, constantly. _Especially_ when their child is missing for nearly an hour."

Emma stood frozen in place, aware that this fight had just become about something far more complicated than keeping Henry out past his bedtime. She nodded slowly, knowing she had fucked up. Big time. Softly, she said, "you're right... I messed up, and I'm sorry. But tomorrow, he'll be all yours again, I'll be gone, and none of this will matter. You won't have to deal with me messing up anymore."

"Maybe not, but I'll still have to deal with the consequences of you leaving, _once again_." Regina shook her head, looking past Emma towards the stairs.

"Regina-"

"You can see yourself out. I assume you still remember where the front door is from the last time you left town." She said, then turned and walked off towards the study, quietly shutting it closed behind her.

Emma took in a deep breath, glancing around the empty foyer for any sign of what to do next. She reached into her pocket but found it empty. No wonder she hadn't heard her phone ring. Looking back to the study door, she wished for a chance to do the last hour over again.

Her conversation with Regina had gone about as badly as it could've gone, but she was still leaving in the morning, so what did it really matter? She already knew that she was never going to be able to fix everything with Regina, but that fight managed to hammer it home. They were always going to argue, but thankfully, for Henry's sake, their opportunities were now limited to Emma's visits to town. She glanced up the stairs towards Henry's bedroom. Her eyes went wide when they met her son's.

He was peeking around the corner of the hallway, a frown on his lips. Emma closed her eyes for a second, instantly regretting the fight that had just occurred. She looked back up to her son and said a soft, "I'm sorry." He nodded at her in understanding, giving her a small smile of comfort. "Get back to bed, alright? I'll see you in the morning."

"Ok."

"Goodnight."

"Night, mama." With that, he disappeared back around the corner.

She stared at where he had been for a few moments and replayed the fight over in her head, wondering how much damage she had just caused. It really was for the best that she was leaving town. Regina and her just weren't made to coexist anymore. With a glance to the study door, she headed outside, turning the lock on the doorknob as she left.


	4. Doesn't Take Much To Rip Us To Pieces

**A/N**: This doesn't feel like my best writing, but I think I've about edited it to death. Hope you enjoy it anyway :)

Thank you guys for the reviews. It's always fun to hear your thoughts.

* * *

Emma jogged up the sidewalk and knocked rapidly on the front door. Five seconds later it flew open. Regina appeared in the doorway, hair in disarray, makeup conspicuously absent from her face.

"You're sure he's not in the house?" Emma asked.

"I checked everywhere. He wasn't in his bed when I got up, and I don't know where else he could be. He's never done this before." Regina ran her fingers through her hair. Even though Emma knew she was trying to hold herself together, her eyes betrayed just how terrified she was.

"You don't have any idea where he could have gone?"

Annoyance flashed in Regina's eyes. "No. I don't know where in the hell he would go at eight in the morning on a Saturday. He doesn't like to get up before noon if he doesn't have to, seems he inherited your sleeping tendencies."

She ignored the look that Regina was giving her, trying instead to think of anywhere Henry could have run off to. He wasn't at the B&B with her... he wouldn't be at school on a Saturday... where else could- "his castle. Do you think there's a chance he could be there?"

"What castle?" Regina studied her with a blank expression.

"You know, his castle at the harbor? Where he goes when he needs to think."

Regina shook her head slightly, brows creased in confusion. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Regina didn't know. She frowned, wondering why Henry would hide it from her. Slowly, she explained, "he told me he has some kind of a castle down by the harbor, but he didn't really go into details, just that he likes the quiet there. Do you think that's where he could be?"

"I guess. I don't know where else he would go."

"Alright. I'll go check it out, see if he's there. You should stay here in case he comes home."

"No, I'm going with you," Regina pulled the front door shut behind her.

Emma opened her mouth to argue, but the look in Regina's eyes told her to drop it. They headed out to Emma's car and started for the harbor. The ride was silent, each woman searching the streets they flew down for any sign of their son.

"There." Regina said, pointing towards the water. "The playground. That must be where his castle is."

Emma pulled into the parking lot across the street from the playground. Her eyes landed on a wooden structure a few hundred feet away, the small figure of their son perched on a platform. Letting out a deep breath in relief, she put the car in park.

"Thank God," Regina whispered and started to open her door. Emma reached out and grabbed Regina's arm, stopping the other woman's movement. "What?" Regina practically growled at her.

Emma ignored her tone and explained, "I'm leaving today. It can't be a coincidence that today is the day he decides to disappear. Let me talk to him alone... please?"

Regina studied her, thinking over her words for a long minute. "Fine."

"Thank you," Emma said, giving Regina's arm a squeeze. Regina nodded and looked back to where their son was. With a deep breath, Emma exited the car and headed across the playground. She knew this conversation was going to be hard, but she was Henry's mom. She had to do this for her son.

As she approached, she expected him to give her at least a glance, but his attention stayed focused on the ground at his feet. Wordlessly, Emma sat down beside him. She studied him for a long moment, unsure of where to start. She had known he wouldn't be happy with her leaving again, but she had never expected he would be so upset as to disappear on Regina like he had that morning.

Glancing back towards the car, she watched as Regina climbed out of it. She leaned against the frame of the yellow bug, crossing her arms over her chest, gaze directed at Emma and Henry. Emma knew that Regina had given her an opportunity to step up and be the parent Henry needed her to be. She couldn't blow this, not like last night. Turning towards her son, she said softly, "you scared your mom and me pretty badly just now... We didn't know where you were or if something bad had happened to you."

"Sorry." Henry mumbled, his eyes still cast towards the sand of the playground.

She studied the look on his face, leaning closer to try to get him to make eye contact. "You wanna tell me why you ran off this morning?"

"I don't want you to go."

She felt the pang of guilt in her stomach. "I know you don't."

After a long pause, his head popped up, eyes staring into hers. "So why can't you stay?"

"Henry, we've talked about this." She was quickly growing nauseous at the thought of leaving, of letting her son down once again. The last thing she ever wanted was to be a disappointment, especially to him.

"Not really. You just said that you couldn't. You never said why."

"I just can't." The look in his eyes told her how let down he was. "I'm sorry." His attention turned towards the ground once more. When the silence surrounded them, she decided not to push him into talking. She settled for watching him and leaned against the wooden beam beside her.

When she really thought about it, she didn't know why she was going back to Chicago. Sure, her life was there now, but the only thing she really had was work and that left a lot to be desired. After the divorce, she had thought that moving to Chicago was the best thing that she could do for her son, but being back in his life suddenly, she wondered if maybe that wasn't the case anymore.

That fight last night had been brutal, and knowing Henry had heard the whole thing made her want to get on the interstate and speed out of town again. But with the way that he was sitting beside her now, practically despondent, she knew that leaving wouldn't make it easier for him this time. Leaving would only hurt him worse than she already had. With that thought, she knew what she had to do.

"Maybe I should try staying here for a while," she said slowly, testing the idea out in her head.

Henry looked up to her in surprise, a big grin on his face. "Really?"

"Yeah." She hoped she wasn't going to regret this. "I don't know how easy it will be for me to get a job here, but maybe I can figure something out. It's worth trying, right?" And if it meant she got to see that smile on his face every day, it was definitely worth it.

"Yeah." He said, his grin growing even bigger. "You really mean it? You're gonna stay?"

"For a while, at least. And if I can find a job, then I'll have no reason to leave. Is it okay if I stay?" She asked, already knowing what his response would be.

"Of course!" He said louder than she had anticipated. Before she knew what was going on, his arms were flung around her and he was hugging her. She felt tears stinging her eyes. Staying was the right decision. She knew that Henry needed her there, and that she needed to be there for herself. Henry pulled out of her grip and looked back up to her.

Cupping his cheek with her hand, she said, "I love you, kid. And I don't want to miss out on any more time with you."

"I love you, too, mama."

She kissed him on the forehead then pulled him in for another hug. Her eyes landed on Regina still standing by the car, watching them carefully. There was still the issue of the tension between her and Regina, something that wasn't going to go away anytime soon. She knew she would have to do better than she had last night. She would have to learn how to be more responsible, how to say the right things, something she had never been very good at. But Henry needed them not to fight, and silently, she promised him that things would be better, for all three of them.

...

"No! No! No, no, no, no, no!" Emma yelled at the television screen as Henry's character managed to kill hers in a sword fight. She dropped her controller and looked at her son sitting beside her. "You beat me again. What is that, the twenty-fifth time?" He looked up to her with a cheeky grin.

"You wanna go again?" He asked.

"I don't know that that's such a good idea," Regina said from behind them, alerting them to her presence in the room. Both Emma and Henry looked back at her. "If you're wanting to get on the road by noon, you should probably start to head out of here," Regina directed at Emma pointedly.

"But I thought you weren't leaving?" Henry asked, looking from Regina to Emma, a slight panic in his voice.

Emma glanced at her ex. The brunette's eyes were filled with questions, her eyebrows raised towards her hairline. Emma looked back down to their son and said, "Henry, why don't you give your mom and I some time to talk alone?" He looked back and forth between his mothers, clearly wondering what was going on. "It's okay. We just need to talk for a little bit. I promise I'll come get you when we're done, ok?" She smiled at him which seemed to reassure him.

"Okay." He said then headed out of the room and up the stairs.

Emma turned off the video game and pushed herself off the ground, stretching her aching muscles. She was getting too old for sitting on the floor. She looked up to Regina and noticed the impatient look on her ex's face. This was not going to be fun.

"I'm not leaving today." She said and shoved her hands into the pockets of her jeans.

Regina shook her head. "Why not?"

"I- uh," she took in a deep breath, "I think I'm gonna be hanging around for a little while."

"What does that mean?" Regina crossed her arms over her chest, as though she were challenging Emma to tell her the truth. Emma's eyes flitted around the room nervously as she tried to find the right words to say. "You're moving back." Regina said, suddenly realizing what was going on.

"Yeah, I am," Emma said softly, feeling the nerves in her stomach. "I've missed out on too much of Henry's life and I want to fix that... Nothing has been right since I moved to Chicago. I've been so lonely there. I don't really have anyone there, any friends or anything. And coming back, it's just made me realize how wrong things have been these past few years. I'm sick of being away from Henry. Too much has happened since I left."

"_You_ left _us_." Regina snapped, the anger burning in her eyes.

"What?" She was stunned at Regina's change in tone.

"You were the one who left us. Nobody made you move to Chicago. Nobody forced you to walk away from us or pick up and leave town. You pulled away. You chose to disappear. You left us. You-" Regina took in a ragged breath, "_you_ left _us_."

They stood in silence for a long while. Emma watched as Regina looked towards the windows, seemingly trying to pull herself back together. She had no idea how to respond to Regina's words. She knew Regina might be mad, but she had no idea she would be this angry. And hurt? Was that pain she saw in Regina's eyes?

"You've told Henry, I suppose?" Regina asked, her voice almost back to the self-assured tone she usually spoke in.

"Yeah."

"Then there's nothing to discuss." She turned towards the door and started to leave.

"Regina, wait." When Regina's eyes were on her again, Emma hesitated. She didn't actually have anything to say, but she couldn't let Regina leave like that.

When the silence stretched on for too long, Regina asked, "Well?"

Emma took a step closer and said, "I'm sorry... After the break up, I thought you didn't really want me around anymore."

Regina looked at her incredulously. "You're blaming me for your disappearing?"

"No! No, not at all. I'm just-" she took in a breath to try to keep herself from saying the wrong thing, "I thought that leaving would be best for Henry. I thought that the fighting was worse for him than not having me around. I thought that if I left it would be better for him... and for you, too."

Regina shook her head. "He's needed you here for the last four years. You leaving was never in his best interests."

"I know. I know that now. I just, after everything ended, I wasn't thinking clearly. I was hurting, and I messed up. I know I messed up, and now I'm trying to fix it. That's all I'm trying to do." She hoped that Regina believed her. More than anything right then, she needed Regina to believe her.

"Ok."

"Ok?"

"Yes, ok. What do you want me to say?"

"I don't know."

Regina stared at her for a moment, then said, "then ok. I'll go get Henry so you two can get back to your game."

She watched Regina's back as she disappeared up the stairs. The brunette's reaction wasn't what Emma had been expecting. She had thought there would be arguing, or yelling, or almost anything other than what it had been. But Regina had been vulnerable, had actually let herself be exposed, something that Emma knew she wasn't used to doing with anyone.

Even when they were at their closest, Regina had almost always managed to keep herself together, even when Emma knew she wanted to fall apart. There were times when it drove Emma crazy, but the strength that Regina had within her surpassed anyone Emma had ever known. Regina was a fighter, and knowing where Regina had come from, the fact that she had any fight left in her at all spoke volumes about her character.

When she heard the sound of Henry's footsteps above her, followed by Regina telling him not to run on the stairs, she couldn't help but smile. Even though things were strained between them now, there was reason to hope that that could change. If Regina was willing to let her in, even just a little bit, she knew that she could fix their relationship. It wouldn't be easy, but Regina was worth it. Regina had always been worth it.


	5. We Make It Up As We Go Along

**A/N: **And with Emma's decision to stay in town, things are about to change in Storybrooke...

A huge thank you once again for all of the feedback. I love each and everyone of you :)

* * *

"Thanks," Emma said to Ruby as the waitress refilled her coffee cup.

"No problem." Ruby gave her a smile and headed back behind the counter.

Emma focused her attention back on her paper and leafed through it, looking through the ads for roommates. She needed a more permanent place than Granny's B&B, but she didn't have enough money for an apartment by herself. The last thing she wanted was a roommate, but with her current financial situation up in the air, she didn't have much of a choice. Scanning the few listings, she found one ad that sounded like it had potential.

"Mama!"

She looked up from her paper, surprised to see both Henry and Regina heading towards her. "Hey guys."

"Can we eat with you?" Henry asked as he slid into the booth across from her, clearly not waiting for her answer. Regina stood a few feet away, arms folded over her chest.

"I'd love that." Emma answered and tried a smile with Regina. The brunette didn't budge.

"I'm going to sit over there, give you two some time to yourselves." Regina motioned to a table by the windows on the other side of the diner.

"Really, Regina, I don't mind-"

"It's fine." Regina said and looked down to Henry, "no cocoa or any kind of sugar, only water, or else you won't be able to settle down during class."

"Ok." Henry said reluctantly. Regina gave Emma a brief glance and turned on her heel towards the distant table. Emma watched as her ex settled down and started scanning over a menu. "Why are you reading the paper?" Henry asked Emma, pulling her attention away from Regina.

"Oh, uh, I was looking for an apartment. You don't know a-" she looked back down to the paper and squinted, "Mary Margaret Blanchard, do you?"

"Yeah, she's my teacher."

Emma's eyebrows shot up. She hadn't been expecting that. "Oh. Ok."

"Why? She's looking for a roommate?"

"Yeah..." An elementary school teacher? With a name like Mary Margaret, she knew she shouldn't have been surprised, but did she really want to room with a grown up who chose to spend their time with kids all day every day? That type of person was probably way too perky first thing in the morning.

"She's cool. You should stay with her."

"I'll think about it." She said, trying her best not to condemn the woman before she had even met her. Her gaze wandered back across the diner to where Regina was putting in her order with Ruby, a tight smile on her lips as the waitress talked to her.

She had barely spoken to Regina since three days ago, when she had told her ex that she was moving back to Storybrooke. Every time that Emma was around Henry, Regina seemed to do whatever she had to to get away from her. Emma tried to pretend like it didn't hurt, but she knew she wasn't fooling anybody, least of all her son. Turning back to Henry, she found that he was studying her carefully. "What?"

"Mom's not happy that you're moving back, is she?"

She took in a deep breath. Choosing her words carefully, she explained, "I think she's probably happy that I'm trying to be more involved in your life. She knows that having me around makes you happy, so she knows that this is going to be better for you than having me in Chicago."

"Do you think you guys will get back together?"

Her eyes widened. She had thought that Regina's silent treatment would've been more than enough to keep Henry from ever going down that train of thought. "Um... I wouldn't get your hopes up, kid."

"Do you _want_ to get back together with her?"

"Henry..." He stared at her with seemingly innocent eyes. "My relationship with your mom is _really_ complicated."

"But you loved her once, right?"

She almost chuckled at how perfect this conversation was. The conversation that every divorced parent has to have with their kid at some point. Softly, she answered, "I did, very much so. But things change, people change. Your mom and I still care about each other a lot, but we're not in love anymore. But we both love you very much, and we'll always have a connection to one another through you."

He seemed to be satisfied with her answer, giving her only a nod before turning his attention to his menu. Her gaze unconsciously drifted back to Regina. The brunette's eyes were focused on her cell phone in her hand, brows narrowed in concern. A few moments passed before her gaze shifted up, meeting Emma's suddenly. Emma swallowed hard then tried a smile, praying for any acknowledgment from her ex. Regina only stared at her for a second then looked back down to her phone.

She took in a deep breath, trying to brush Regina's slight off. It was going to take time. Things weren't just going to magically revert to the way they had been before they got bad. It would take patience and persistence, but Emma vowed to make things better. She wanted to at least get to the point where they could all three sit down to breakfast together, instead of having to be separated across the room.

...

"So what are you going to do today?"

She looked down at Henry, surprised at the abrupt change in topic. She had been asking about school, but apparently he had other plans for their conversation. "I was planning on looking into a job. I'm not really sure what there is for me to do here as far as work is concerned. I don't really think Storybrooke needs a bail bonds person, so I'm gonna have to see what else is out there for me."

"Sounds like a plan."

She was walking Henry to school, which Regina had suggested when she had discovered that she was late for a meeting. As they turned down the street his school was on, she realized she hadn't heard him mention one word about his studies since she had been back. "So do you just hate school or what? Cause I can't really blame you for that. I wasn't much into it when I was younger either."

He shrugged, avoiding eye contact. "It's okay, I guess."

"You guess?"

"Yeah. It's nothing to get excited about. We just do math and read and stuff."

"That sounds vaguely familiar." As the school building came into view, she smiled down at her son. "Listen, how about I pick you up here when school gets out and we can go get some ice cream?"

"Ok."

"School gets out at what- three?" She stopped in front of the entrance to the school and turned to look at Henry.

"Three-thirty." He smiled at her, clearly amused at how clueless she was. She had to fight to not roll her eyes at him, but the guilt flared deep within her. What kind of a mother didn't know what time school let out?

_A bad one,_ she answered without hesitation.

"Alright, I will be here at three-thirty then. Have a good day." She pulled him into a quick hug then watched him run up towards the building.

"See you later!" He yelled over his shoulder.

"It's good to see the smile back on his face." Emma turned towards the unfamiliar voice to see a small brunette with a pixie haircut standing nearby. "I'm Mary Margaret Blanchard, Henry's teacher." She said, holding out her hand. Emma shook it, realization dawning on her.

"Emma Swan."

"How do you know Henry?"

She stared at the other woman, almost stunned by the question. She knew she shouldn't have been surprised- she'd never met the schoolteacher before so how would the brunette know who she was- but there was something about the question that made her nauseous. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she answered, "I'm his mother."

"Oh." Emma wasn't sure what the 'oh' meant, if it was in disapproval or just surprise. Mary Margaret shook her head suddenly, an apologetic look on her face. Quickly, she added, "I'm sorry, I just- I'd heard that Henry had another mother, but I was under the impression that you weren't in his life any more."

Emma forced a smile at the brunette, trying to stifle the now-familiar ache in her chest. "I wasn't much, until about a week ago."

"Well, it's good that you're back. He seems to be much happier."

Emma frowned, taking a step closer to the schoolteacher. "He wasn't happy before?"

Mary Margaret studied her carefully, then shook her head no. "He's been struggling lately. He's a very special boy, but his grades aren't what they used to be. I've spoken with Mayor Mills about it, but so far nothing's changed- until today."

"I didn't know that he was having problems." She felt guilty, wondering what part her absence played in his struggle. She made a mental note to ask Regina about it when she saw her next.

"Well, having you back seems to have done wonders for him. Are you staying in town?"

Emma regarded the schoolteacher carefully. "Yeah, actually... About that..."

...

Glancing at the newspaper, she reread the job listing. It was the only job opening in town and she was quickly running out of money. Looking across the street to the animal shelter, she knew she had to do it. It was her only hope. If she really wanted to become a part of this community again, she had to get a job.

"Miss Swan."

A shiver ran down her spine at the cool voice. She turned to find Regina standing a few feet away, studying her with a tight smile. "Regina. Hi." She didn't know why but suddenly she found herself feeling embarrassed. Maybe it was her job prospects. Dog groomer didn't exactly measure up to town mayor.

"Assuming you're still intent on staying in town, you're going to need a job, correct?"

"Yeah." She swallowed down her pride, motioning towards the animal shelter across the street. "I was actually gonna go see about the opening at the shelter."

Regina's eyebrows rose in surprise. "You'd never be able to pay rent working there, let alone have enough money left over for living expenses."

"Well, it's the only job that I've found. I think it's the only one open in town. Is that normal?" She said with a slight grin, trying to ease the tension between them. She left out the part about being desperate for money, not wanting to give Regina any more of a reason to be unimpressed with her.

"Actually, it's not. There's a deputy position open at the sheriff's office. It's yours if you want it." Regina said, her eyes sweeping over the street, avoiding Emma's gaze.

It was probably the closest thing she could get in Storybrooke to her old job, so Emma knew without a doubt that it would suit her perfectly. The pace would be infinitely slower, but the change would do her good.

"The offer won't be good forever." Regina said suddenly.

"I'll take it." She smiled at Regina, wanting to show her gratitude. "Thank you."

"Your appreciation is unnecessary. You start tomorrow at eight o'clock. The sheriff will run you through everything you need to know."

"I'll be there."

"And that's eight o'clock in the morning, Miss Swan. Don't be late."

She fought to keep from rolling her eyes. "I won't."

Without another word, Regina turned and started to walk away. Emma watched her take a few steps, eyes trailing down Regina's backside, watching her hips swing from side to side. Quickly, her eyes snapped up, knowing the last thing she needed was to be thinking _those_ thoughts. When Regina had gotten a few steps away, Emma remembered her earlier conversation with Henry's teacher. "Regina?"

Regina halted, turning around suddenly, annoyance in her eyes. "Miss Swan, I have things I have to do."

"It's about Henry." She watched the look in Regina's eyes soften. She knew the subject of their son would always garner Regina's attention. Emma crossed the distance to her, rephrasing the words carefully in her head. She knew that, with Regina, there was a right way to have this conversation and a thousand wrong ways. It was important that she got this one right. "I met Henry's teacher earlier today."

"Really." Regina said in the most uninterested tone Emma had ever heard her use.

"She made it sound like Henry has been having problems lately." Emma watched as hardness set in Regina's gaze.

"And?"

"And I was just wondering what was going on? He seems alright to me, but she said that he hasn't been happy much lately." When Regina's jaw clenched, Emma knew that she hadn't said the right things.

"And what? You're wanting to know how much blame to place with me? To see if my neuroses damaged him just like you promised they would?"

She winced at the memory of a fight from years before. "No. Not at all." She held up her hands in surrender, praying that she could salvage the conversation before it fell into the war of words that they were so familiar with. "I was just wondering what was going on with him. Is he being bullied at school or something?"

Regina studied her with distrust in her eyes. "As far as I know, he isn't, but I doubt he would tell me if he was."

"So you don't have any idea why he's been so unhappy lately?"

After a long internal struggle, Regina answered, "no, I don't. And as hard as I've tried to fix it, it only seemed like things were getting worse... until you came to town." She added the last part quietly, anger in her gaze.

She couldn't blame Regina for resenting her, not when the brunette had clearly been dealing with Henry's problems for a while before Emma came back to Storybrooke. If the situation were reversed, she knew she would feel the same way. "It doesn't mean that anything's fixed. I'm just a welcomed distraction from whatever's bothering him. It doesn't mean that there isn't still a problem... So what should we do?"

Regina flinched a little. "We?" She asked, as though she'd never heard the word before.

"Yeah, we. I mean- I know you're used to handling things on your own, but I'm here now and I want to help, so what can I do?" Regina stared at her, lips parted just slightly, disbelief in her eyes. "Regina?"

Regina quickly tore her gaze away, looking out to the shops across the street. "Talk to him. Try to get him to open up. He won't talk to me, but maybe..." she looked back to meet Emma's eyes again, "maybe he'll talk to you."

She felt the pang of guilt in her stomach. Ever since she had gotten back to town, Emma had noticed a distance in Regina's relationship with Henry that Emma knew that she didn't have in her own. Briefly wondering what had caused that to develop, she nodded at her ex. "I'll give it a shot." She offered up a hopeful smile that wasn't returned.

Regina nodded once, taking a step backwards. "Good... Have a nice day," she said, a bit of hurt shining through her tone, then quickly turned and headed down the sidewalk.

"You too." Emma called out to Regina's retreating form.


	6. You Don't Know The Power That You Have

**A/N: **Pretty soon things are going to be much more focused on Regina and Emma and less so on Henry. I'm a little concerned about the reception for this chapter, but hopefully y'all like it. I promise that I have a plan that involves a very happy last half of the story. We just have to get to it first.

And I'm switching to posting updates twice a week (for the next couple weeks only) cause I want to get to chapter 12 by Christmas (as it is Christmastime in Storybrooke), so there'll be an update on either Friday or Saturday.

To everyone who is reading/reviewing/all that other jazz- thank you for your support. I can never tell you enough how much it means to me.

* * *

It was the first real parental duty that she had been assigned since she moved back, and she had no idea how to do it. She had tried to talk to Henry about his problems over ice cream that first afternoon, but the kid kept avoiding her questions with a skill she didn't know he had. The next day, her first as deputy, was filled with the sheriff giving her an orientation that was more tedious than informative, then the evening was spent moving her newly arrived belongings into Mary Margaret's spare room.

The next day, only her second day of work, she purposefully asked Graham for some time off in the afternoon so she could pick Henry up from school. The sheriff seemed to understand her request and gave her an hour. Waiting outside the schoolhouse for the bell to ring, she nervously ran through all of the things that she could say and all of the things that she absolutely shouldn't say. When she heard the loud ringing, she took in deep breath, gave herself a pep talk, and prayed to whatever God was up there that she could get the information she needed. She had to do this, for Henry and for Regina.

"Mama?"

She looked through the crowds of kids exiting the building and saw Henry approaching her. Smiling, she said, "hey kid. How was school?"

Giving her a brief glance, he shrugged and headed out of the schoolyard. "It was okay. I thought you were supposed to be working?"

Emma fell in step beside him. Taking a deep breath, she answered, "yeah, I am. I mean- I'm on break for a little bit. I thought I'd walk you home and maybe we could talk?"

He eyed her suspiciously. "Talk about what?"

He really was more Regina's kid than her own. With a chuckle, she said, "you, actually..." It was now or never, she decided. "You know, ever since I got back to town, you haven't really told me about how things have been going. You've talked to me about comic books and tv shows and other stuff, but you haven't really told me anything about you."

"What do you want to know?"

She couldn't just come right out and say it, even though the thought was tempting. She had to work her way around to it, ease him into the conversation. "I don't know. How have things been at school lately? You spend most of your day there, but you hardly talk about it at all."

"It's okay."

They turned onto one of the neighborhood streets, giving them more privacy on their walk to the mayor's house. "Just okay?"

"Yeah." His eyes stayed on the sidewalk in front of them, purposefully avoiding those of his mother.

Emma knew she shouldn't have been surprised by his answer considering how chatty he'd been about school lately, but she had been hoping for something, _anything_ that could give her insight into his problems. Time for a different angle. "Is there anything you want to talk about? Anything you need advice about or want help with?"

"No."

"You're sure?" She was starting to get desperate.

"Yeah."

So much for easing him into the conversation. "Henry." She said, stopping suddenly. He turned towards her in confusion. There was only one way that she was going to get any answers, any real answers, and she knew she had to do it. Kneeling down in front of him, she took both of his hands in her own. Her eyes locked on his, she said, "your mom and I are worried about you."

His brow wrinkled in confusion. "Why?"

"Well, your mom tells me that things were difficult for you before I got here, that you were struggling in school and that you weren't happy, and I was just wondering why? What's been going on? You know you can talk to me about anything, and I'll do whatever I can to help."

He studied her, as though he were trying to gauge how trustworthy she was. She guessed that he found what he was looking for as he seemed to relax. "You'll do _whatever_ you can to help?"

"Yes. I promise. You just have to open up to me first."

He nodded, causing Emma to breathe a sigh in relief. "It's mom."

"Mom?"

"Yeah."

Shaking her head, she tried to piece the puzzle together. "She's the reason you're unhappy? What's she been doing to you?" Emma tried to imagine anything that Regina could do to Henry to hurt him but came up empty-handed. There was no way in hell that Regina would intentionally hurt their son.

"It's not like that." Henry said quickly, concern shining through his gaze. "I'm worried about her."

"What? Why?"

"She's been messed up lately. She doesn't smile as much as she used to, and she drinks more." Emma's eyebrows shot up towards her hairline. "She tries to pretend like everything's normal, but it isn't. And sometimes she cries at night when she thinks that I'm asleep and can't hear her. I just... I don't know what to do to make her happy. I've tried to help but it's never good enough."

Her heart broke at the look in his eyes, as though he were to blame for what was going on with Regina. "Oh, Henry, whatever's going on with your mom has nothing to do with you, I promise."

"I just wish that I could help her."

"You do help her. Whether you realize it or not, having you around makes her so happy. She loves you more than anything, and even when you do something as small as just giving her a smile, it makes her so happy."

"But she's still upset. It's not enough... I'm not enough."

Before she knew what she was doing, she was on her feet and pulling Henry in for a tight hug. "You are enough." She said into his hair. "I promise you, you are so much more than enough for her." She kissed the top of his head and held on to him for a little while. When she finally pulled away, she bent over to look him square in the eye. "I don't know what's going on with her, but I promise you it has nothing to do with you. And I know without a doubt, that if she didn't have you, she would be struggling so much more than she is now. Having you in her life makes her so happy, Henry. You'll never know just how good you are for her."

"But she's still unhappy."

"But you understand that it has nothing to do with you, right? That it isn't your fault?" He nodded slowly, as though he was wavering in his answer. She decided to let it go for now and continued, "I don't know what's going on with your mom, but," she took in a deep breath, hoping she would be able to make good on her word, "I promise you that I'll figure out what's going on. It's gonna take a while, but I'll do whatever I have to to get your mom to be happy again. Okay?"

He studied her for a moment, his eyes searching hers, then nodded. "Okay."

She ran her fingers across his forehead, straightening up the hair that she had mussed when she had hugged him. Giving him a small smile, she asked, "can you promise me something?"

"What?"

"That you won't let this upset you too much? That you'll focus on your schoolwork and being a kid and that you'll leave the worrying about your mom to me. Can you do that for me?"

He looked at her uncertainly. "I can try."

"Alright. And if things get too hard, or if you wanna talk about it, you can always come talk to me. Day or night, no matter what I'm doing, if you wanna talk, I'm willing to listen, okay?"

"Okay."

He gave her a small smile that she quickly returned. Running her fingers through his hair one last time, she prayed that things would be easier on him now that she could share the burden of his secret. "Now how about we get you home?"

They started back down the sidewalk towards the mansion, a comfortable silence between them. When they reached the gate to Regina's property, Henry stopped suddenly. "I almost forgot, mom wanted me to invite you over for dinner tonight."

Emma did a double-take, sure that she hadn't heard Henry's words correctly. "What?"

"Yeah, she said she wanted to extend an olive branch or something. I guess she wants to try to be friends."

Studying the look in Henry's eyes, Emma let out a confused, "huh." He shrugged at her, and she nodded. "Well, I guess I'm coming over for dinner then." It was more a question than a statement, but it made Henry's face light up.

"Cool. Be here at six thirty." He said quickly then pushed through the gate and headed up to the house.

Emma watched him go, surprised at the sudden turn of events. Regina had always been a little unpredictable, always playing close to the vest until she was ready to show her cards, but this went above and beyond that. Nearly every conversation that they'd had since Emma had been back inevitably drifted towards fighting before they were through. Except the last one, she realized, their conversation about the problems Henry had been having. Maybe Regina was open to being more of a family together, thinking that it might help Henry work through whatever was going on.

Whatever the reason, Regina was offering her a chance to make things better. It was the opportunity that Emma had been searching for since her return to Storybrooke. Staring up at the house, she felt the weight start to lift from her shoulders.

...

It was six twenty-eight when Emma pulled up to the house in her bug.

The previous two hours had been a whirlwind of over-thinking and insecurity. She had wanted to bring something over to Regina's for dinner, to show her appreciation for the invite. She thought about wine, but didn't know what was for dinner and didn't really know anything about wine anyway, even though Regina had been somewhat of a connoisseur for years. Then she thought about bringing flowers, but it seemed too romantic, like dinner was a date or something. She had gone back to the wine idea as Mary Margaret got home.

Her new roommate easily sensed her distress, and after a bit of prodding, finally got the problem out of her. Mary Margaret had suggested she bring something for dessert, but Emma had quickly shot her down with a mumbled, "anytime I try to cook, I wind up catching something on fire." Mary Margaret only smiled and volunteered to do the baking for her, as long as Emma promised to be her assistant. An hour and a half later, Mary Margaret pulled out a Martha Stewart-inspired apple pie from the oven.

It was sitting next to Emma on the passenger seat, almost taunting her for how pathetic she was. Regina would see right through this. Her ex knew she couldn't bake, especially something that was actually edible. She would know that Emma wasn't the source of the pie. But it was the thought that counted, she told herself. She had wanted to do something nice, and she did the best that she knew how.

Grabbing the dish, she took a shaky breath and got out of the car. The walk up to the front door seemed to take forever, her heartbeat pulsing in her ears with each step. She ran her fingers through her hair a few times then quickly rapped on the white wood before she could change her mind and bolt. Taking a step backwards, she hoped for the thousandth time that dinner would be a good experience for them as a family. They were definitely past due for one.

The door opened suddenly, causing her to jump as Regina appeared in the doorway. When she saw that it was Emma on her front porch, her eyes narrowed in question. "Deputy? What are you doing here?"

"I came for dinner..." She said slowly, an uneasy feeling settling in her stomach. Something wasn't right. When Regina's confusion only remained, she added, "Henry said that you wanted me to come."

"Oh, he did?" Regina's eyes betrayed her surprise.

"You mean, you didn't-" Realization dawned on her. "Oh..." she said softly, tearing her eyes away from Regina's in embarrassment. "He lied to me."

"Yes, it seems that he did." Regina said, her voice more gentle than it normally was.

Her attention focused on the window beside the door, Emma couldn't believe that Henry would do that to her, that he would lie to her face about Regina, especially after the conversation that they had been having. She had promised him that she would help him, so why would he deceive her so easily? It didn't make sense.

Regina's voice broke through her thoughts, startling Emma once again. "Henry mentioned to me that you walked him home from school today. He said that the two of you had a good talk. I hope that it was about what we discussed the other day."

She forced herself to meet Regina's gaze again, trying desperately to bury the embarrassment that she was feeling. "Yeah, it was, and I think he's gonna be alright now." She inwardly cringed at what she was about to do, but knew she owed Regina some kind of explanation. And the truth was definitely _not_ an option. "Apparently there was some kid that had been picking on him lately, but the kid got transferred to another class so there shouldn't be a problem anymore."

"Oh."

"Yeah, I think he's gonna be fine now."

"Well. Good." Regina seemed surprised by Emma's words, but also pleased. Her eyes swept over the blonde, stopping on the foil-covered pie in her hands. Emma instantly wished that she hadn't decided to bring anything to dinner after all. Slowly, Regina's gaze rose to meet hers again. Giving her a tight smile, she said, "well, there is more than enough food for three. You are welcome to join us."

"Oh, it's- it's alright. I'll go." She took a step backwards, wishing the ground would open up beneath her and swallow her whole. "But thanks." She didn't think that anything could give her comfort in that moment, but Regina's next words took her breath away.

"Emma, I want you to stay."

She turned back towards Regina, her mouth hanging slightly agape. "You do?" She asked softly.

The momentary flicker of emotions that Emma saw in Regina's eyes was quickly extinguished, her mask slipping perfectly back into place. "Yes." Regina stepped out of the doorway and motioned for her to enter. "Come on in."

"Thanks." She gave Regina a genuine smile and moved past her and into the foyer. She noticed that Henry was peeking out of the doorway of the living room. When he saw that Emma had caught him, he immediately disappeared again. She chuckled then turned back towards Regina, whose eyes were trained on the spot where their son had just been.

"Henry?" Regina called out. A few moments passed before Henry joined them in the foyer, apprehension in his eyes. "You know better than to lie to someone." Regina's voice was soft but stern, leaving no doubt that she was disappointed in her son's actions.

He looked down towards his feet, saying softly, "I know."

"You owe your mother an apology."

Emma glanced towards Regina in surprise, but the brunette's eyes were trained on their son. Looking back to Henry, she realized that this had nothing to do with her. It was about Henry learning a lesson, nothing more, nothing less.

"I'm sorry, mama." He said quietly.

Emma knelt down in front of him, forcing him to make eye contact with her. She wondered what was going on in his mind, what he had been thinking earlier when he decided to invite her for dinner, but the guilt written all over his face told her enough to let it go. She didn't want to make him feel any worse than he already did. "Just don't do it again, ok?"

He nodded then asked, "does that mean you aren't staying for dinner?" There was fear in his eyes, as though he were about to lose everything if his question was answered the wrong way.

"Actually she is." Regina answered for her. "And I believe that dinner is getting cold. I hope you're hungry for roast, Emma."

Her heart skipped a beat. Standing up from the floor, she said, "are you kidding? I love your pot roast."

Regina smiled, a genuine smile, one that Emma hadn't seen in years. The brunette's gaze dropped to the dish in Emma's hands. "How about I take that into the kitchen? You and Henry can go in and have a seat." She motioned towards the dining room, where three place settings had already been laid out. When her gaze landed on Henry in question, he gave her a sheepish grin.

"You asked me to set the table earlier." He said.

Regina chuckled a little and nodded. "That I did." She reached out for the pie in Emma's hands, but the blonde's voice stopped her movements.

"I'd like to help out if I can."

Cool brown eyes met hers, sending a shiver down her spine. Regina paused for a moment as she studied the blonde. A perfectly sculpted eyebrow was raised. "Do you still remember where the wine glasses are?"

"The cabinet on the left hand side of the window." Emma answered with certainty.

Regina nodded once in confirmation. Turning her attention towards Henry, she said, "go ahead, dear. We'll be right in." He started towards the dining room, while Regina headed towards the kitchen. Emma followed her in. "The wine's in the refrigerator, the merlot." Regina said over her shoulder as she gave her attention to the pot roast.

Emma nodded and fetched the bottle and the corkscrew. She pulled the cork out with minimal effort, grabbed two wine glasses, and followed Regina and the roast out into the dining room. They settled into their chairs in silence, each taking turns serving themselves. After taking her first bite, Emma broke the stillness, saying, "this is really good, Regina. Thank you."

Regina looked up to her in surprise. A ghost of a smile crossed her lips as she said softly, "you're welcome."

"Yeah, mom, thanks." Henry piped up, pulling both women's attention away from each other.

Throughout dinner, Regina remained relatively silent, despite Emma's frequent attempts to get her involved in the conversation. Henry did more than enough talking for both of them, chatting more animatedly than Emma had seen since she came back to town. She briefly wondered why that was but chalked it up to the fact that this was their first real time together as a family in years. He was bound to be excited about it, especially since he orchestrated the whole thing.

It wasn't until Regina was refilling her wine glass that Emma realized how quickly her ex had drained it. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. Regina had always been restrained with her wine consumption, finding one glass was just enough to have the desired effect on her. She never once went for a second in all the years that Emma had known her. Add to that the matter of Regina's mother and _her_ history with alcohol- something that Regina was always paranoid that she would repeat- and Emma found herself stunned by the brunette's behavior.

Throughout the rest of dinner, Emma did her best to watch Regina without being obvious that she was watching. But as Regina drained her second glass and started on her third, Emma realized that something really was going on. Henry had been right. The thought made her stomach churn in dread. She never would've guessed that Regina would fall apart, but with what Henry had told her, it looked like it might've actually happened.

When it came time for dessert, the pie laid out on the table in front of her, Emma casually informed Regina and Henry, "Mary Margaret baked this, so it's edible. I just helped out a little."

Regina looked up to her in surprise. Emma expected some retort about her lack of domestic skills, but the brunette only smiled weakly, saying, "well, it looks delicious."

They ate the pie in near silence. Each time Henry's eyes met her own, Emma gave him a smile. It was clear that he had picked up on the distance between his mothers, but Emma had to thank whatever God was up there that she and Regina had apparently moved past fighting. She couldn't help but wonder what part the wine played in that, if they would only go back to arguing tomorrow. But for now, at least there was reason to hope for progress.

Regina was the first one to break the silence. "I have some work I need to get done," she said and stood up from her chair.

"But you're not finished eating," Henry protested weakly, staring at the plate of half-eaten pie as though it were his lifeline.

"I've had enough." She said, the look in her eyes leaving no room for argument. Giving a glance to Emma, she nodded at the blonde. "Thank you for the dessert, Deputy." Turning back to Henry, she added, "I'll be in the study if you need anything."

"Ok," he mumbled without looking at her.

Emma knew this was her last chance, that Regina was leaving no matter what was said or done, so she knew she had to make it count. "Thank you for dinner, Regina. I really had a great time tonight." Her words were acknowledged only with an incline of Regina's head. The brunette grabbed her plate and her half-filled wine glass and disappeared into the kitchen. Emma turned her attention towards Henry, finding the boy staring at the rest of his pie, shoulders slumped, his appetite apparently gone. "Sorry, kid."

His eyes met hers. After studying her carefully for a few moments, he whispered, "you see it now, right? How different she is?"

With a glance back to the kitchen door, making sure Regina was out of earshot, she nodded. "I can definitely see why you're worried about her."

"But you're gonna help her, right?"

"I told you I would earlier, and I meant it, but it's gonna take time, Henry. Right now, I'm not sure what I can do for her." She could see that his hope was fading, and it made her chest ache. Reaching over, she placed her hand on top of his, wanting to give him comfort. When his eyes met hers again in question, she said with resolve, "but I will help her, I promise. I will help her get through whatever is going on, ok?"

"Ok."

Emma watched as he started back on his pie again, apparently satisfied that she was committed enough to helping Regina. Giving a glance across the table to where her ex had been sitting, where the wine bottle still stood on the table, she felt her stomach tie in knots. She didn't know how in the hell she was going to help Regina, but it was clear that she needed to.

"You wanna go play video games?"

Glancing back to her son, she found that his plate was empty and wondered how long she had been lost in her thoughts. She replayed his question in her head and hesitated. She wanted to spend more time with him, but she knew that she had to do the responsible thing and not intrude on Regina's evening any more than she already had. "Actually, I should probably get going, but how about we do the dishes first? Make things a little easier for your mom."

"Ok."

They both stood up, collecting the dishes, and headed into the kitchen. With Henry rinsing his plate at the sink, Emma put the half-empty bottle of wine on the cabinet, fighting the urge to dump its contents down the drain. She didn't know what her feelings were about Regina drinking over her self-imposed limit, but she knew that it went beyond simple concern.

She was almost terrified, unsure of what could've hurt Regina so badly that she would openly drink in front of Emma like she had at dinner. Regina knew that Emma was aware of her thoughts on alcohol, and yet she downed three glasses of wine in a half an hour. It was so out of character for Regina, so completely different from the woman that Emma left four years ago.

She tried to tell herself that it was only three glasses of wine- it wasn't like Regina had drained the whole bottle- but the thought didn't comfort her. Until she found out what was bothering Regina and then helped the brunette through it, she knew comfort wouldn't come easy. Nausea settling in her stomach, she realized that comfort probably wouldn't come at all.


	7. The Blooms Break Through The Ice

**A/N:** For once, I actually have nothing to say. Thanks for all the support. I really hope you guys like this chapter. Things they are a-changin' :)

* * *

Opening the gate to Regina's yard, she turned her face to the sky. It looked like rain even though the forecast had promised sunny skies. She had thought it would be perfect to take Henry to the batting cages for a few hours, but it looked as though she might have to change their plans. As she headed up the steps to the portico, the front door opened slowly. Henry poked his head through the crack.

"Hey. I'm not ready to go yet, but you can come inside." He opened the door wider and reached for her arm.

"Oh, Henry, I don't know that that's such a good-"

"Come on." He said, pulling her into the house against her will.

She stepped into the foyer to be met with the sound of piano playing. Regina's piano playing. She looked towards Henry in question, but her son immediately bolted for the stairs, leaving her standing awkwardly alone in the foyer. Turning towards the exit, she found that the front door was still slightly ajar. She could wait for Henry outside, avoid upsetting the truce that had recently formed between her and Regina.

But the last thing that she wanted was to leave. She listened to the music drifting out of the living room. Wanting to be closer, she took soft steps towards the source of the sound. It was a slow number, Chopin if she remembered correctly, a piece that she had heard many times before. It had always been one of Regina's favorites. When the brunette came into view around the corner, Emma froze, her breath catching in her throat.

Regina looked at ease, something that Emma had yet to see since she got back to town. Her eyes were closed, fingers gliding effortlessly over the keys. There was a ghost of a smile on her lips. Unconsciously, Emma leaned against the banister, watching in rapt fascination as Regina played through the rest of the number.

Before Henry was born, back when they still lived in Boston, Regina would play for her every evening. It was their nightly ritual, their way of winding down from the chaos that each day brought. Sometimes Emma would read a book or a magazine while Regina played, but mostly she simply studied her wife, watched the way that the music would flow through her. Each night she knew that she fell a little bit more in love with Regina.

It was memories like those that haunted Emma when she wondered if she had made a mistake by walking away. The happiness they had together was real, and even though things got so ugly between them, she knew that Regina was the only person who would ever have a place in her heart. It didn't matter what happened between them, she knew that Regina was her soul mate. She just wasn't sure that she was Regina's.

With the last notes of the song hanging in the air, Regina slowly pulled her hands away from the keys, her eyes opening for the first time since Emma had started watching her. A few moments passed in silence before Regina glanced down to her watch. Annoyance crossed her face, and she turned on the piano bench towards the foyer. Her eyes met Emma's.

Immediately straightening up, Emma internally cursed herself for getting caught. She felt the panic rise within her, her cheeks growing hot. "Regina, I- I'm sorry, I just- Henry let me in, then he ran upstairs for something. And you were playing and I didn't-"

Regina held up her hand, causing Emma to stop talking. "It's fine," she said, though her eyes gave away her discomfort. Standing, she smoothed down her skirt and started into the foyer. She stopped at the base of the stairs, only a few feet away from where Emma was standing, but paid the blonde no attention. Her gaze turned up to the second floor, she called out, "Henry?"

A few moments passed in silence before an answer came down. "Be right there!"

Emma chanced a look at Regina at the same time that the brunette turned towards her. Giving Regina a smile, she decided she had to say what she was thinking. Even if it wasn't the right thing to say, she still wanted Regina to know. "Your playing is still so beautiful."

Regina gave her the briefest of smiles then quickly peeled her gaze away from Emma's, turning her attention back to the stairs as though she were pleading for Henry to join them. "Thank you," she said softly.

"You know," Emma chuckled nervously, "anytime I hear a piano, I always think of you." Regina's eyes snapped up to meet hers. "But nobody's music makes me feel the same way yours does."

Regina seemed to be at war with herself, conflict shining in her eyes. Her voice barely audible, she asked, "how does it make you feel?"

"Indescribably happy... Like the only things that exist in this world are the two of us and that piano. It's kinda perfect." She feared her words were too much for Regina, but the brunette gave her a genuine smile. They both heard a noise from above, drawing their attention upstairs. Henry appeared on the second story landing and quickly started down. "Hey, kid. You ready to go?"

"Yeah."

Emma turned her attention back to Regina. "I'll have him back by dinnertime."

The brunette stared at her for a moment, as though she were debating something with herself, then finally responded, "if you'd like, you may keep him for dinner tonight."

"Really?" Henry asked from the stairs, eyebrows knitted in confusion.

"Yes," Regina turned her attention back to Emma, "but have him home by eight."

"Will do." She watched as Regina turned her attention back to their son and gave him a weak smile. When Regina started up the stairs towards where Henry was standing, Emma got an idea. "Regina?" The brunette turned towards her, eyebrows raised in question. "You wanna have dinner with us? We can all go to Granny's, my treat."

Her eyes widened for a split second before any trace of emotion was wiped from her face. "Oh, I... don't think so."

"Please, mom?"

Regina turned back to Henry. His bottom lip was stuck out ever so slightly, eyes wide with hope. Emma couldn't see Regina's face from her angle, but she knew the brunette was struggling with turning him down. "Not tonight," Regina said softly to Henry, "but you two have fun." She placed a gentle hand on Henry's shoulder as she passed him on her way upstairs.

Emma watched until Regina was out of sight, then turned her attention back to her son. The disappointment was obvious in his eyes. "It's just gonna take time," she said softly, not wanting to chance Regina hearing her from above. "But things are getting better between the three of us, right? I mean, we had a pretty peaceful dinner the other night. That was progress."

"Yeah." His shoulders slumped a little as he walked down the rest of the stairs and towards the front door.

Emma turned her attention back to the top of the staircase. Regina was avoiding her again, that much was obvious. Their dinner three nights ago had been too much for the brunette. It was too much like it used to be, too intimate for where she and Regina were in their relationship now. It was only natural for Regina to be pulling away again, but it made Emma's mission that much more difficult.

Ever since Henry had tasked her with helping Regina, she had been searching for ways to do just that, but so far she had come up with nothing. Her only plan was to keep a closer eye on her ex, but considering the distance between them, it wasn't going to be easy. She knew that there was nothing she could really do to help until Regina was willing to let her in, and Regina was nowhere near ready for that.

"Mama?" She looked back to Henry. He was standing on the front porch, eying her. "You coming?"

"Yeah." She cast a quick look back upstairs then followed her son outside.

...

She checked the clock on her cell phone. It was nearing nine-thirty; she had promised Regina she would get Henry home by ten. The last twenty minutes or so, Henry's enthusiasm for trick-or-treating seemed to have waned, so she thought it was probably time to start their journey back home. It had been a long enough night for the both of them.

She glanced back to the most recent house they had stopped at, finding Henry already on his way back down the sidewalk, his Darth Vader mask tucked under his arm. When he got to her, he smiled wearily then broke out into a yawn.

Chuckling, she said, "how about we call it a night?"

He seemed to relax at the idea and nodded. "Ok."

As they started in the direction of the house, Emma asked, "you think your mom's home yet?" Regina had experienced some emergency at the office earlier that day, forcing her to stay late to work on a tax paperwork thing that Emma didn't begin to understand, let alone want to.

"Probably not. She said she might not be home before bedtime."

Emma frowned, not having realized things were so bad for Regina. "Then how about we stop by her office so that you can tell her goodnight?" City Hall was only a few blocks out of the way. A quick visit would allow her a chance to check in on Regina, see how she was doing without drawing attention to her motives.

"Ok." Henry's mood seemed to brighten at the idea of seeing his mother, causing Emma to smile.

Some ten minutes later, they made it to City Hall. Emma glanced across the street and found Regina's car parked in an otherwise empty lot. She followed Henry up to the building and checked the front door. It was unlocked. She knew that the town was nearly crime-free, but that didn't mean that basic safety precautions shouldn't be taken. She made a mental note to talk to Regina about that later as they headed up towards the mayor's office, their footsteps echoing throughout the empty building.

When Emma reached the open door to Regina's office and glanced inside, her heart skipped a beat. Regina was behind her desk, writing steadily on a document. She felt Henry nudge her forward and looked down to her son. He gave her a small smile and nodded. She wasn't sure what he was looking so happy about, but after glancing back up at Regina, she cleared her throat.

Regina looked up from her desk in surprise. "Hi." She said slowly as she schooled her features back into place. "What are you two doing here?" Her gaze fixed on Henry, she stood up and moved around her desk as Emma and Henry crossed the room towards her.

"We thought we'd surprise you," He said with a grin.

"And that you did. How was trick-or-treating?"

He held up his plastic pumpkin full of candy. "Really awesome."

Both Emma and Regina chuckled, their eyes meeting for a moment. When Regina looked back down to Henry's loot, Emma studied the smile on her ex's face. She really missed seeing that smile on a regular basis. "How about we take you home?" She heard herself asking without thought.

Regina looked up to her in surprise. With a shake of her head, she answered, "I need to work for a little while longer, probably another couple of hours."

"Please, mom?" Henry begged. "It's almost ten. You can do the rest tomorrow. Please?"

Regina closed her eyes for a few moments, and Emma knew then what her answer would be. "Alright," she said softly.

"Yes!"

"I just have to get my things." Regina said and circled back around her desk.

A few minutes later, the trio was back outside of City Hall, and after a little begging from Henry, were walking towards the house, leaving Regina's car abandoned in the parking lot. Henry not-so-subtly moved from between the women to Emma's far side, forcing Regina and Emma to walk next to each other. Emma glanced up to Regina to gauge the brunette's reaction, but her expression was blank, her attention focused on the sidewalk in front of them. Looking down to Henry, Emma watched as he snuck a hand into his pumpkin and pulled out a piece of candy.

"Hey, let me check it first," she said, holding out her hand for the treat. He handed it to her and she gave it the once over. "Looks alright." She held it back out for him to take, asking, "can I have a piece?"

"Sure." He reached back into his pumpkin and pulled out a Baby Ruth for her.

As she took the candy, she smiled at her luck. Glancing at Regina, she found the brunette already watching her. "Here," she offered, knowing the candy was Regina's favorite. When the look in the brunette's eyes changed, and Emma could tell she was about to decline, she quickly added with a smirk, "you know you want it, Mills."

Regina's eyes went wide at the playful tone that Emma hadn't used with her in years. Her gaze dropped down to where the candy bar laid on Emma's palm. "Thank you," she said softly, her fingertips grazing Emma's skin as she took the candy bar from her. Emma gave her a small smile that was hesitantly returned.

When Regina's gaze was torn from hers, Emma glanced back down to Henry to find their son watching them carefully, a grin in his eyes. "Here," he said, holding up another candy bar, a Butterfinger, for Emma to take.

"Thanks," she took the bar then chanced a look over to Regina. The brunette had already opened hers up and was taking a bite of the chocolate. Before she was caught staring, Emma quickly turned her attention back to the path in front of them. There were only a few blocks to go before they reached the house. She felt her mood darken at the thought. The last thing she wanted was to say goodbye to her family again. "So..." she searched for anything to say to Regina, "you work too hard. Don't you have people you can delegate tax things to or something?" She cringed. _That_ was the best she could do?

"I could, but not if I want the paperwork done correctly and on schedule."

Emma chuckled. Regina had always been a perfectionist. It was good to see that some things never changed. "Do you still have a lot left to do tomorrow?"

"Yes, unfortunately. A woman in the office was supposed to file the papers today, but when I reviewed them this afternoon, I found so many mistakes that I decided to just start over. It'll probably take a couple of days to get everything sorted out."

"I'm sorry." Regina looked up to her in surprise. She felt her heart leap in her chest and continued nervously, "it must be pretty hard being mayor, you know, being responsible for the welfare of the whole town and everything. When Henry told me that you were elected a few years ago, I knew that you were perfect for the job, but I never thought about how difficult it has to be, the pressure that's gotta come with it."

"It has its stresses, but it usually isn't too bad."

"Good... That's good to hear." She looked back to the path in front of them and winced. Not exactly the conversation she wanted to have with Regina, but at least they were talking cordially about something.

"How are you adjusting to being back in Storybrooke?"

Her eyes snapped up to meet Regina's, eyebrows raising in surprise. "Um, fine... It's been fine."

The look Regina gave her made it clear that the brunette didn't believe her. Regina knew how difficult the adjustment was the first time Emma moved to Storybrooke; there was no way it was going to be any easier now. "And the deputy position?"

"It's been interesting." _Boring_. Boring was the right word for it, but she wasn't about to say that to the woman who helped her land a source of income when she so desperately needed it. Regina smirked at her, apparently seeing right through her to the truth. She gave a half-smile and added, "it's pretty different from what I'm used to, but that's not necessarily a bad thing."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, it's not nearly as stressful as my job in Chicago was. I don't have to worry about money anymore, and you know, I'm not dealing with the scum of the earth now. I haven't touched a first aid kit in the month that I've been here, so that's a bonus." She watched as Regina's eyes softened, knowing the brunette always hated how dangerous her work could be. She pretended that her stomach wasn't doing somersaults at the way that Regina was looking at her and said, "being deputy is definitely a good change. It's just gonna take a little while to get used to the slower pace, but it's where I'm supposed to be."

"Good. I'm glad that you like it."

As they approached the gate of the house, Emma slowed her walk. She didn't want to cross the property line, didn't want Regina to feel pressured into inviting her inside. It was late enough as it was; Henry and Regina both needed to get to sleep. "Well, this is where I say goodnight." She looked down to Henry in time to see another yawn. Chuckling, she said, "I had a lot of fun tonight, kiddo."

"Me too." He wrapped his arms around Emma's waist in a quick hug. "Night, mama."

"Night, buddy." When he pulled away and headed through the gate to the house, Emma turned her attention to Regina. Her ex was standing a few feet away, studying Emma carefully. Emma tamped down the feelings in her stomach, forcing herself to remain a picture of togetherness despite how nervous she suddenly was.

Regina broke the silence first, saying, "thank you for taking him. I know it was a hassle for you to get out of work tonight to do it. I really appreciate it."

"It was no problem. I had a lot of fun with him." She did a double-take. "Wait- how'd you know about work?"

"I spoke with the sheriff. He told me that you promised to work nights next week for him if he would cover for you tonight. And if you ask me," Regina leaned in just slightly, "he took advantage of your poor bargaining position."

Emma let out a laugh at how serious Regina was, causing the corners of Regina's mouth to quirk upward. "Well, the trade was worth it. I'm just sorry you couldn't come with us."

"So am I. I would've liked to have seen Henry trick-or-treating. Just a few more years and he'll think he's too old for it." There was a wistful smile on Regina's lips, and Emma could see the fear in her eyes. Their little boy was growing up too fast.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." She wanted to add a 'together' in there somewhere, but she knew Regina was still adjusting to having Emma back in town. She needed to be careful when it came to inserting herself in Regina's life. The last thing she wanted was to hurt the brunette any more than she already had.

After a pause, Regina said softly, "it's good that you moved back, Emma. He's really loved having you here."

"I've loved being here. I can't believe that I ever left." When the smile fell off of Regina's face, she knew that she probably shouldn't have said anything, but she couldn't keep herself from adding softly, "dumbest decision of my life."

Regina took a step backwards, closer towards the house, her gaze turning across the street. "Well, I should be going. Henry needs to get to bed."

Emma glanced up to the house where Henry was standing under the porch light, watching his mothers carefully. "Of course." She looked back to Regina as the brunette took another step backwards. "Have a good night, Regina."

"You too."

She watched as Regina headed through the front gate and walked up to where Henry was waiting on the front porch. When the door was unlocked and Henry had disappeared inside, Regina hesitated in the doorway. Slowly, she turned back around. When their eyes met, Emma's heart skipped a beat. She held up her hand in a wave, and Regina returned it before disappearing inside the house and closing the door behind her.

Emma took in a deep breath, trying to steady her heartbeat. They were definitely making progress.


	8. Pieces Of Me You've Never Seen

**A/N:** I'm really unsure about the writing of this chapter, but I have a final exam later today, and my sleep deprived brain insists on posting this now, so happy Tuesday. The next update should be posted by Sunday and I think ya'll are gonna really like it :)

Thanks again for all of the reviews/favorites/follows. It's really an awesome feeling to know that my story means something to you guys.

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Opening the gate to Regina's property, Emma had a faint sense of deja vu. She was doing her best to not force herself into Regina's life any more than she had to be, but lately she had been spending a fair amount of time with Henry. Probably more than Regina wanted, she thought with a grimace. She should probably talk to Regina about it, make sure that she wasn't stepping over any boundaries.

She knocked on the front door then crammed her hands in the pockets of her jacket. A few moments passed before it was opened, Henry appearing in the doorway, a huge smile on his face. "Hey, mama, come on in." He opened the door wider for her to enter, but she hesitated.

"How about you just tell your mom that we're leaving?" The last thing that she wanted was to intrude on Regina's privacy, not after what had happened the last time she had gone into the house unannounced. She could still see the look of vulnerability in Regina's eyes after Emma had caught her playing the piano.

"Actually, we're not leaving." He gave her a Cheshire grin.

"What?"

"You're coming in and the three of us are having a family game night." He informed her, leaving no room for argument. The look on his face reminded her of a distinct look Regina had given her countless times over the years.

"Oh, we are?"

"Yeah. Mom agreed and if she did, you have to, too."

Hesitating, she remembered the last time Henry told her that Regina wanted her involved in a family event. When he had been lying. "She really did agree or you're just saying that to get me in the house?"

"She really agreed. She even said the two of us could pick out the game together."

She studied the look on his face, searching for any signs of deception. When she found none, a grin broke out and she shrugged. "Well, that sounds great. What should we play?" She asked as she stepped over the threshold.

She heard the door close behind her and Henry answered, "Battleship, duh."

"Oh. Of course." She climbed the stairs into the foyer, hearing his footsteps echoing behind her.

"It's my favorite."

Guilt flared in her chest. It was one more thing that she hadn't known about him. "It's a great game." Suddenly remembering their earlier phone call, when they had made plans for the afternoon, she spun around. "But wait- I thought you wanted to go to the movies? That you were dying to see the new James Bond?"

"It can wait." He said simply and headed past her towards the dining room.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." She quickly crossed the foyer, following after him. "That was _not_ what you said this morning." Glancing around the room, she noticed that the game was already set out on the dining room table but Regina was nowhere in sight. "Where's your mom?"

"She's upstairs. We're supposed to call her down when we're ready to play."

She lowered her voice, leaning in closer to her son. "Okay, what's really going on?"

"What do you mean?"

"You really were dying to see that movie, and now you're perfectly happy to stay in and play Battleship? What made you change your mind?" She stared him down, hoping to make him realize she wanted answers, real answers, not more attempts to duck her questions.

His eyes lowered in defeat. "I just thought it would be fun for the three of us to do something together, like we used to, and maybe it would make mom happy again. She used to love it when we all three did things together."

There was a distinct ache in her chest. "Oh, kid... I'm sorry..." She reached up and put her hands on his shoulders, giving them a squeeze. She should've known that was the real reason. The only thing Henry seemed to have on his mind lately was Regina's well-being. "Game night's a really good idea. This'll be fun."

His eyes met hers again, shining with hope. "You think so?"

"I know so." She offered up a gentle smile. When it was returned, she added, "we'll make sure she has a good time tonight, ok?"

"Ok."

A noise from upstairs broke through the foyer. Emma watched as Henry's features schooled themselves back into place, as though he hadn't just been upset. She pulled away from him and turned in time to see Regina coming down the stairs. Brown eyes met green. Emma swallowed hard then forced herself to speak. "Henry tells me that we're playing Battleship."

Regina nodded slightly. Crossing the foyer, she said, "that we are."

An idea popped into her head. "And that the two of you are teaming up against me." Regina's eyebrows raised towards her hairline. Emma gave her a smirk, saying confidently, "you are _so_ going down, Mills."

Regina froze in place for a moment, surprise crossing her features, but the look was masked almost as soon as it had appeared. The corners of Regina's lips turned upward, a glimmer of arrogance in her eyes. "Oh, I don't think so, Swan."

Her heart skipped a beat. It had been a long time since she'd seen the competitive side of Regina. Before she could respond, Regina's attention focused on their son, a soft smile crossing her face. "I'm gonna go get the snacks from the kitchen. You two can get started without me, alright?" Henry nodded, and Regina headed into the next room.

Henry settled into a chair on one side of the table, one half of the game set up in front of him. Emma smirked then settled down into the chair opposite her son. She tried to remember the rules of the game that she hadn't played since she was Henry's age, but her memories of it were hazy at best. The one thing she really knew for certain was that it wasn't a game you could play in teams. Softly, she asked Henry, "so how exactly were three people going to play Battleship together?"

Henry's eyebrows furrowed, his gaze meeting hers over his game. "I don't know... I never thought about it, but it's always what me and mom play for game night."

"Oh," she said softly. His attention went back to setting up his board, but she continued to stare at him. She really had missed out on so much. Every time she realized how many moments she hadn't been a part of, an ache settled into her chest and her mood was ruined for the remainder of the day. And the worst part about it was, no matter what happened the rest of their lives, she knew she'd never be able to make up those four years to him or to Regina.

The door to the kitchen opened behind her and she sensed Regina re-enter the room. A tray of crackers and fruits was sat down on the table next to her. She looked up to find Regina standing next to her chair. A small smile was already on Regina's lips; a warmth was in her eyes that Emma hadn't seen in such a long time. Before she could say anything, Regina turned away and headed over to Henry's side of the table. Pulling a chair around to sit next to him, her attention focused on his gameboard.

Once the game started, Emma took to studying Regina and their son more than she paid attention to actually playing. She watched the way that Henry leaned into his mother each time he settled back into his chair after moving a piece, how Regina instinctively put her arm around his shoulders, the way she would whisper suggestions into his ear causing him to break out into a devious grin. Before Emma even knew what had happened, Henry had called out the game winning shot.

She looked up to him and smiled at the excitement on his face. Shaking her head, she said in a somber tone, "you sunk my battleship."

"Yes!" He turned to Regina and held up a hand. With a laugh, she gave him a high five. "You rock, mom!"

Regina chuckled then said, "thank you, sweetheart. You 'rock' as well."

Emma's heart swelled watching the two people in front of her. When Henry began pulling pieces out of his gameboard to start a new round, Regina's gaze met hers, a smile still playing on her lips. She expected Regina to look away, to find the intimacy of the moment to be too much, but Regina only smiled wider at her, genuine happiness in her eyes. Emma took in a deep breath, her heartbeat pulsing in her ears.

It had been five years since Regina had looked at her like that, and suddenly it felt as if the divorce never happened, like they hadn't spent half a decade apart. It was just another perfect moment together spent with their son, being the family that they were always meant to be. When Regina's attention was pulled away by Henry, Emma let out the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding.

...

Emma pulled the quilt up the bed and tucked it gently around Henry. Kissing his forehead, she prayed that the fever that had set in the past few hours would disappear by daybreak. She sat down on the chair at his desk and watched him sleep. Their family game night had been going well until Henry had complained of a stomach ache. It went downhill quickly after that, first with nausea, then vomiting, then the fever. He had only fallen asleep some fifteen minutes ago, a few hours past his normal bedtime.

"He finally fell asleep?"

Emma turned and found Regina standing just a few feet away. "Yeah," she whispered.

"Good." Regina's eyes lingered on Henry for a while, giving Emma time to observe her ex. The anxiety that Regina had been trying to hide all evening was now more evident than before. All Henry had was a simple cold, probably some twenty-four hour bug he picked up from a classmate, but Emma knew that to Regina it was so much more than that. Brown eyes met hers. "Thank you for staying with him while I cleaned up downstairs."

"No problem." She had a feeling that Regina wanted to ask her to leave, but no such words came out of the brunette's mouth. Instead, Regina yawned, quickly covering it with her hand. When her eyes met Emma's again, Emma said, "how about you get some sleep?"

Regina shook her head, saying, "I don't want to leave him alone. Not when he still has a fever."

"I'll stay with him." Regina eyed her carefully. "And if his fever gets much higher, I'll wake you up, I promise." Emma watched as Regina looked back to Henry, seemingly thinking over her offer.

"But don't you want to get some sleep?"

Emma smiled and shook her head. "I'll be fine. It won't be the first time I've pulled an all-nighter to take care of him." Regina looked back to her, still clearly uneasy with Emma's idea. "I promise I can take care of him."

"I know you can," Regina whispered. "I remember how good you were with him when he had colic."

Emma chuckled at the memories, most involving her sobbing while Henry cried uncontrollably in her arms. "Well, that was a long time ago. I'd like to think that I'm a little better at controlling my crying now."

"I wasn't talking about that," Regina said, a ghost of a smile on her lips. "You did get pretty emotional at times, when his crying was the worst, but really, you were incredibly patient and loving. You handled it a lot better than I did."

"Oh, please." Emma had to keep herself from rolling her eyes. "You handled everything perfectly. From the first day we brought him home, you were flawless. I was always amazed at how easy everything seemed to you, while I always felt completely clueless."

Regina's eyes wandered back to Henry for a few moments. "You want to know the truth?" She looked back to Emma, earning a nod from the blonde. "Ever since the day I found out that you were pregnant, I've been terrified. I worry constantly about everything that I'm doing that affects him. I may have seemed like I had everything under control, but deep down I've always been a mess."

Emma hesitated, surprised by Regina's sudden candor. "I had no idea," she said softly. "You never told me you were scared." She watched as Regina looked back towards their son, taking in a deep breath, then met her eyes again and forced a smile.

"I didn't want you to think that I couldn't handle raising him."

"I would've never thought that."

Regina hesitated then shook her head. "I know you wouldn't, I just... I've never been very good at letting go of control, you know that better than anyone... Telling you how scared I was, that would've meant surrendering, exposing my deepest fear. I didn't know how to do that."

Emma nodded, unsure of how to respond to that. They stared at each other in silence for a long moment, then Regina walked up to the side of Henry's bed. Emma watched as Regina ran her fingers through his hair a few times then kissed him gently on the forehead. When she straightened up and looked back to Emma, she gave the blonde a smile.

"You're sure you don't mind staying up with him?" She asked in a whisper.

"Not at all."

Regina nodded once, holding Emma's gaze, then headed towards the door. Emma looked back to their son, still sleeping peacefully. She wondered if her connection through him to Regina would be enough to bring them closer together again, back to the place that Emma knew they belonged.

"Emma..."

Her heart skipped a beat. "Yeah?" She asked, turning around to see Regina standing in the doorway, the light from the hallway illuminating her frame from behind.

"Thanks for taking care of him tonight." Regina gave her a genuine smile and she immediately returned it.

"You're welcome."

"I'll see you in the morning."

"Sleep well."

With another nod, Regina disappeared, leaving Emma breathless.


	9. I Don't Need Much To Keep Me Warm

**A/N:** So. I made Henry sick. Then I got sick. Karma's apparently got a sense of humor that I don't really appreciate. The next two chapters have been pretty much done for a while now, but I don't know when they'll be posted. They need to be edited some more still, and with my foggy brain right now, it's not an easy task to accomplish.

Obviously the Christmas chapter by Christmas will not be happening now, but I'm still going to try to update on a regular basis, depending on how quickly I can get feeling better. This chapter is probably the poorest written one so far, but I wanted an update for you guys. It's been more than long enough of a wait, and I'm sorry for that. And a super big thank you for all of the support this story has gotten! I love you guys for it.

* * *

_Ow._

She winced at the throbbing pain in her neck.

"Emma?"

Her eyes opened at the sound of a soft feminine voice. Stretching her neck out, she blinked the room into focus. _Henry's_ room. She sat upright, letting out a groan at the pain that shot down her back. When she saw that Henry was still asleep in his bed, the bed that she had apparently just been resting her head on, she remembered the night before.

"Are you alright?"

She turned to her left to find Regina standing beside her chair, a robe wrapped tightly around her body, make-up absent from her face. "Um... yeah. Fine." She answered softly, trying to ignore the feelings that fluttered in her stomach. "What time is it?"

"Eight thirty."

"Decided to sleep in, huh?" She asked with a chuckle, running a hand through her hair to hopefully straighten out any mess that the night had brought.

Regina smirked. "Well, it _is_ Sunday. I thought I'd treat myself with an extra half hour of sleep."

"That was very generous of you."

A sound from Henry's bed stole their attention, both women turning towards their son. He shifted underneath the covers, his eyes fluttering open. He took in the sight of both of his mothers and frowned. "Mama?"

Emma shifted in her chair, leaning closer to Henry. "Hey, buddy. How are you feeling?"

"Okay... What are you doing here?"

"I stayed overnight cause you were sick. But if you want me to go, I will." She said, pretending like she was offended by the question, but a smile crept onto her face.

"No!" He called out, bolting upright in bed. "You can't go."

"Whoa, okay... I'll stay." She squeezed his shoulder, watching him carefully as he seemed to calm down. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah..." His gaze shifted nervously over the quilt on his bed. "But I'm kinda hungry."

Her hand went to his head, feeling for any sign of fever. "Well, you should be. You didn't exactly keep down your dinner last night." He smiled weakly at her. When she was certain his fever had passed, she asked, "you want to try some toast? See if you can keep that down. Then if you're still hungry, you can try something with more substance."

"Okay." His attention turned towards Regina, who had been observing their conversation in silence.

Emma looked back at her ex, suddenly feeling like she had overstepped. "I mean- if you think that it's okay..."

Regina gave her a gentle smile, causing her to relax. "Of course it is. I'll go downstairs and make it." She looked back to Henry. "Grape jam?"

"Yeah." Regina started to leave, but Henry's voice cut through the air, stopping her halfway to the door. "But you guys are hungry, too, right? You both should eat something."

Emma knew what he was trying to do, and by the look in Regina's eyes, she wasn't the only one. Regina nodded once in acquiescence, asking Emma, "how does an omelet sound?"

"Sounds great."

"How about you make me toast while mom makes the omelets?" Henry suggested, attempting nonchalance but failing.

Emma chuckled at how good her son suddenly was at orchestrating moments for her to interact with Regina. "I think that sounds like a great plan. We'll be back in a few minutes, ok?"

"Ok." He settled back down into the bed, a self-satisfied smile on his face.

Emma shook her head as she stood up, trying not to laugh at how adorable he was. Her eyes met Regina's, finding the other woman to be just as amused. She followed Regina out of his room and downstairs to the kitchen. When the door swung shut behind her, Regina glanced at her, a smile playing on her lips.

"It seems our son wants us to spend more time together."

"Really? I hadn't noticed." Emma said as Regina started getting ingredients out of the refrigerator. A carton of eggs and a jug of milk were placed out on the island before Regina looked at her again.

"Do you want your omelet the same way I used to make them?"

"Sure." Cheese, mushrooms, and a green pepper joined the eggs and milk on the island. "How about I chop while you do whatever else needs to be done?" Emma asked. Regina looked towards her suddenly, eyebrows raised in surprise.

"_You_ are going to help me cook?"

She felt her stomach drop. During their marriage, cooking had been something that she stayed away from. Regina did the cooking, she did the cleaning, but now that she thought about it, the arrangement seemed hollow. She forced a smile, suddenly nervous, and said, "if you want help."

Regina studied her carefully then nodded once, a look of wonder in her eyes. "Sure."

Emma went to work chopping the mushrooms and pepper. As she listened to Regina moving throughout the room behind her, the same feeling from the night before came back. She was home again. Even though things weren't exactly how she wanted them to be, she couldn't help but feel that this was where she belonged. It was a feeling she had only ever gotten when she was with Regina.

They didn't speak again until two omelets were cooking on the stove. When they were working in different corners of the room, the silence seemed to make sense, but now that Emma was leaning against the counter only a few feet away from where Regina stood at the stove, Emma couldn't stand the quiet anymore. She watched as Regina started to empty the bowl of chopped ingredients into one of the skillets and asked, "so how have you been doing lately?"

Regina's hands froze for a split second, before continuing on like nothing had happened. "Fine. Yourself?"

She knew that she should've expected that answer. With Regina, a vague question had always meant receiving a vague answer in return. With a small sigh, she answered, "I've been alright." She waited for Regina to make some quip in response, but nothing came. The night before, while she had watched Henry sleep peacefully, she kept replaying her last conversation with Regina in her head. She didn't know if bringing it up again was the smart thing to do or not, but once the thought crossed her mind, there was no getting out of it. "I keep thinking about what you told me last night."

Regina's gaze stayed focused on her cooking, scraping the edges of the eggs down with a turner. "Oh?"

She would've given anything to know what Regina was thinking in that moment, if she was scared of last night's topic being reopened, if she regretted being so candid about her fears. Emma knew she was about to head into dangerous territory, but there were a few things she didn't say last night that she wished that she had. "You've done an amazing job raising Henry."

Regina's hands froze once again. Slowly, she turned towards Emma, questioning eyes meeting green. "You make it sound like I've raised him alone."

"The last four years, you have. And before that... you said last night that you were afraid of making the wrong decisions, of being a good enough parent to him... and me- I never felt like I was cut out to be a mother. Ever. I didn't have parents, I had no idea what the hell a parent was supposed to do, but I didn't doubt your abilities for a second."

Emma took in a deep breath before continuing, her gaze wandering nervously from the stove to Regina and back again, "you were the only reason I ever thought that having a kid would work, because I knew that your love and your strength would get us through it... And I hated that, I hated that I wasn't good enough to be Henry's mom, but _you_ always were. I just wish that I could've been more for you, been better so you didn't have to carry the burden alone."

Regina stared at her with an unreadable expression before glancing back to the skillets on the stove. For a second, Emma thought that her confession was going to go unacknowledged, but Regina turned down the heat on the stove then turned towards her, giving Emma her full attention. "I wasn't alone... not when you were still here. And despite what you think, Emma, you have always been a great mom." Regina took a step closer, a look of understanding in her eyes. "I know the adjustment to being a parent was hard for you, that you never really felt like you had the instincts a mother should have, but you do. You _always_ have."

Emma looked down to the ground, taking in a ragged breath. The last thing she wanted was to cry in front of Regina, but Regina's words had been too much, hit way too close to home. They were exactly what she'd always needed to hear Regina say, only she didn't realize it until now. "I just..." She closed her eyes, begging the tears to go away. Crying would only ruin whatever this moment was that was happening between them. She didn't want to ruin anything more than she already had.

"Emma... look at me."

"I'm sorry." She felt a tear slide down her cheek and quickly wiped it away. Opening her eyes, she took in a deep breath and forced herself to meet Regina's understanding gaze. "I'm alright. I just-" she gave Regina a shaky smile and shrugged, whispering, "I just wanted you to know that you weren't the only one who was afraid."

Another tear escaped, falling down Emma's cheek. A moment passed before Regina reached up, her fingers gently wiping it away. Her touch ghosting over Emma's skin, she cupped the blonde's cheek, studying Emma in awe. "You've never cried in front of me before," she whispered.

"I haven't?" She could've sworn that she had, certain that at some point during their relationship she had broken down in front of Regina. But searching her memory, she found nothing. No moments of Regina comforting her in the safety of their bedroom, like she knew she had done for Regina a handful of nights during their relationship.

"No."

"Well..." she gave Regina a weak smile, "while we're making omelets seems as good a time as any to change that, right?"

Regina chuckled, pulling her hand away from Emma's cheek, leaving Emma feeling more alone than she had in weeks. "Yes, it does." Regina glanced back to the stove, grabbing the turner to check on the progress of the omelets. Emma watched as Regina folded over both omelets with a skill that Emma knew she didn't possess herself. Regina glanced at her and said, "you should probably start on Henry's toast. These are about done."

"Ok."

When two pieces of bread were browning in the toaster, Emma glanced across the kitchen to where Regina was still standing at the stove, her back facing Emma. She could still feel Regina's touch on her cheek, still hear the gentle words that Regina had said to her. With slight hesitation, she asked, "you really believe that... what you said about my instincts?" Her voice wasn't as strong as she had hoped it would be, but with Regina, she knew that she was safe. Even though it wasn't easy for her, she could be vulnerable with Regina.

Regina turned towards her, meeting her gaze from across the room. "Yes," she answered with conviction.

Emma stared at her, the corners of her mouth quirking upward. She opened her mouth to reply, a half-formed response in the back of her mind, but the toaster popped behind her, interrupting the moment. She forced a smile at Regina and quickly turned around to retrieve the toast. Covering both pieces with grape jam, she purposefully ignored the way her heart was hammering in her chest.

When they were climbing the stairs to their son's room with breakfast in hand, Emma following behind Regina- trying hard to look anywhere but the view that was right in front of her- she muttered, "that was probably not the conversation Henry planned for us to have." When she heard a laugh come from Regina, she knew that the day was gonna be a perfect one.

...

"But Logan survives, right?" She asked into the walkie talkie, briefly wondering how they got talking about X-Men movies and why she felt a sudden need to know about these characters that her son loved so much.

"Of course he does." Henry's voice answered. "Wolverine comes up behind Deadpool and slices his head off."

She let out a startled laugh. She hadn't been expecting _that_ answer. "And your mom let you watch this movie?" She knew the answer before even asking the question. There wasn't a chance in hell that Regina had allowed Henry to see anything so violent, but she needed to hear what he had to say for himself.

There was a pause before Henry answered. "Not really... It was on tv and she wasn't home and I was kinda dying to see it. But you're not gonna tell her, are you?"

"Kid... if your mom doesn't want you to watch movies like that, there's a reason for it. You've gotta respect the decisions she makes on things like that, even if they don't always agree with what you want. She's your mom. She knows what's best for you." She waited for a response but none came. "Henry?" She stared at the walkie talkie for what seemed like minutes, before a different voice came through the speaker.

"Emma?"

Her eyes went wide at her ex's voice. "Regina?"

"You're aware that Henry's bedtime is nine o'clock on school nights?"

She glanced at the clock on her nightstand. Ten fifteen. _Shit_. "I guess we got a little lost in conversation. I didn't realize what time it was. Sorry." She cringed, knowing she should have realized how late it was, but with the way that Henry was excitedly rambling on about Wolverine, she found herself becoming more engrossed in the story than she would've guessed possible.

"Night, Emma." Henry's voice came through the speaker, his earlier excitement suddenly gone.

"Night, buddy. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay."

When nothing else came through the handset, she put it back on her nightstand. She was laying on her back in bed, staring up at the ceiling. The only light in the room came from the lamp on the desk in the far corner. She knew she should get up, do something productive with the last hour of her evening, but she didn't move. Her eyes wandered over the trio of cracks in her ceiling, her thoughts drifting back to the weekend and the perfect Sunday that she had spent with Regina and Henry.

They had spent most of the day holed up in the living room with a stack of DVDs, Henry laying on the floor in front of the tv while she and Regina took opposite ends of the couch. Lunch and dinner had been eaten in the living room, something that usually was forbidden, but Regina had allowed since it was a "special day." The memory brought a smile to Emma's lips.

Ever since she had been getting closer with Regina, she kept thinking about the way things used to be between them, how perfect life had been during most of their marriage. Regina was the only person that she had ever let in, the only constant she ever had in her life. After her years in the foster system, where she learned how necessary it was to keep people at arm's length, falling in love with Regina was unexpected. They were both only teenagers- she was eighteen, Regina nineteen- so she assumed the relationship would only be a fling at best. But one year together turned into two, and then they were married, and even though she kept waiting for the rug to be pulled out from under her, it never was. She wished she could say the same for Regina.

"Emma?"

She jumped at the sudden interruption of the silence. Realizing the voice came from the walkie talkie- that it was Regina who had said her name- she grabbed the handset off of her nightstand and quickly replied, "hey, you."

A few moments of silence passed before Regina responded, "I haven't seen you in a couple of days." Her voice was softer than it usually was, similar to the tone that Regina used when she was speaking with Henry.

Emma smiled into the walkie talkie. "I figured after last weekend you could use a few days without having me hanging around... I kinda feel like I've been intruding on your life lately, and that's the last thing I wanna do."

"You haven't been." Regina said quickly, probably quicker than she wanted to if the silence that followed was any indication.

"I'm really glad to hear that."

There was another pause before Regina asked, "so where did you get these things anyway? The pawn shop?"

Smooth change in topic, Regina, she thought with a grin. _Real_ smooth. "Graham got new walkie talkies for the station so he gave these to me."

"He _gave_ you city property?" She could hear the mayor's voice shining through Regina's own.

With a chuckle, she answered, "he said that if I didn't take them, they were gonna wind up in the trash. I thought they'd be fun for me and Henry to use." She quickly added, "but not an hour after his bedtime, obviously."

"Obviously." She thought she could hear a hint of a smile in Regina's tone, but chalked it up to wishful thinking.

"I'm really sorry about that. If I had realized what time it was, I promise you, we would not have been talking." She cringed again at her ability to be so oblivious.

"I know." That soft tone was back, causing Emma's stomach to somersault. "You've been doing really well with him since you came back."

"Thanks... That means a lot coming from you." She waited a few seconds for a response, but when none came, she added, "being back has been so strange. I keep having moments where it feels like I never left, but then Henry tells me something about himself that I didn't know, and I just feel _so_ guilty. And I know that I should feel guilty, because I abandoned him..." She took in a ragged breath, the sting of tears in her eyes. "I don't think that guilt is ever gonna go away, no matter how involved I am in the rest of his life."

"Emma..."

"I know... I don't really even know why I'm saying all this, I just-" she felt a tear escape down her cheek and quickly wiped it away, "I just want you to know... that I know that just because things have been going good lately, it doesn't mean that I've assumed everything is perfect now. I know that I really hurt both of you, and I think about it every single day. I know that being back in both of your lives is a gift, and every moment that I get, I cherish it. I'm not taking this lightly, Regina, I promise. I know how lucky I am to get a second chance."

She waited what felt like minutes for a response, but finally Regina's voice came through the speaker. "I'm glad to hear that you feel that way."

She wanted Regina to say more, to actually give her something of substance in return, but the silence dragged on for seconds and she knew that was all that was coming. "I just wanted you to know that all the time that we've spent together as a family lately, it's meant a lot more me than just watching movies and playing games. And I know that you're not doing any of it for me, that the time we've spent together is for Henry's benefit, but thank you. For letting me back in, even just a little bit."

There was another long pause before Regina responded. "You're welcome."

She didn't know what to say next. Every thought that had been begging for release had been spoken to Regina in the last few weeks. She had never been one for sharing her feelings, but lately, when she was around Regina, it seemed like she couldn't help but tell her ex everything that she was thinking. It was unusual for her to be so candid, but at the same time, it felt so right.

"Emma?"

Her heart leapt in her chest. "Yeah?"

"Even though I haven't said much tonight, I like that you're opening up to me... In the last few weeks, you've probably been more open with me than you were during the last few years of our marriage." There was a short pause, before Regina added, "I've really missed being the person that you let yourself open up to."

She didn't know how to respond to that. What Regina said about their marriage was true. Emma had pulled away the last couple of years they were together, the distance growing between them with each conversation Emma refused to engage in. She had her reasons, so many of them, but now they all seemed meaningless. She didn't know how she could've ever let things get so bad before, especially when Regina was the one she had promised to spend the rest of her life with. "I've missed having you to open up to."

In the silence that followed, she tried to think of something else to say, but before anything coherent could form in her mind, Regina's voice cut through the silence. "Well... I have an early meeting tomorrow that I have to prepare for, so I should go."

"Alright."

"Have a good night, Emma."

"Sweet dreams."

"You, too."


	10. Pull Me Back Down Another Year

**A/N:** The flu finally went away but the insomnia remains, so hopefully this chapter makes sense. One more chapter of heart to hearts and things are gonna change :)

Thank you all for the well wishes and thank you for the feedback for this story. I really wasn't sure about the last chapter, but I'm glad you guys enjoyed it anyway.

* * *

There were very few things in life that Emma found more boring than City Council meetings. Listening to the council members drone on and on about town minutiae while sitting on one of the more uncomfortable chairs in the state of Maine, she always found herself counting the seconds until Regina would declare the meeting adjourned with a strike of her gavel. It had been three months since Emma had gotten the deputy job, three months since discovering these meetings were mandatory for her, and she hadn't yet developed a strategy for alleviating the boredom.

Since the first meeting she was required to go to, Mary Margaret had always come with her. At first Emma thought it was out of some sense of roommate loyalty or solidarity or something, but as the weeks went by and Mary Margaret grew increasingly annoyed at Emma's whispered wisecracks, Emma realized her roommate was actually interested in what was going on, even enjoying it. Since then, Emma had limited herself to only making jokes when the opportunities were just too good to pass up- which usually resulted in a disapproving glare from Mary Margaret- and tried to find other means with which to distract herself.

The past few weeks, she had found herself staring at Regina through most of the meetings. The first time she had caught herself openly leering, she had overcompensated by refusing to look at Regina the rest of the day. The next week, when she realized she was doing it again, she knew it was pointless to try to fight it. In a room full of people, Regina would always be the one that she would seek out.

Emma found this meeting to be no different. She spent the first few minutes listening to the most important details of the meeting, just in case Graham decided to talk to her about it, even though he never did. But when Miss Ginger had started complaining about the lack of nutritional dining options at Granny's, Emma's gaze trailed to where Regina sat at the front of the room.

Regina had always had an impressive air about her, as though she were born from nobility rather than a post office worker and a secretary. She carried herself with authority, which Emma knew was sometimes misinterpreted as arrogance. Watching Regina at the head of the room, surveying the people of the town with a confident eye, Emma realized that Regina really had found her calling.

Back when they lived in Boston, Regina had worked for one of the better law firms in town, but the job was more exhausting than fulfilling. She was good at dismantling people, tearing apart their presumptions and exposing their weaknesses. It had made her ideal for the work, but she never really enjoyed it. She was made for taking care of people not destroying them, always anticipating others' needs before they even realized what they were missing themselves. Being mayor of Storybrooke allowed her to do just that, letting her lead the people of the town while simultaneously making Storybrooke a better place.

When the noise level in the room picked up, Emma snapped out of her daze. She looked around to find that people were already leaving the hall, the meeting apparently over. With a glance to her watch, she found that an hour had passed since the meeting began. A whole hour that she had apparently been thinking about nothing but Regina.

She turned to her right to find Mary Margaret already standing beside her, looking down at her with an amused grin on her lips. "What?"

"Nothing."

Emma eyed the knowing look on her roommate's face but decided to let it go. Standing, she followed Mary Margaret into the aisle, giving one last look to Regina at the front of the room. When they had made it to the hallway outside of the meeting room, Mary Margaret was pulled to the side to talk to Granny. Emma stood by dutifully but tuned their conversation out, her thoughts turning once more to Regina. She wondered what her ex's plans were for the weekend. Maybe they could do another day of movies with Henry or go out to the park. The newspaper forecast said that the weather was supposed to be pretty nice tomorrow.

"Hey, Emma."

She startled out of her thoughts, turning in the direction of the voice to find Graham approaching her. "Hey, boss. What's up?" Even though he never really acted like a boss with her, she still liked to use the term with him, finding the embarrassed expression he gave in return was more than amusing. This time was no exception.

"Regina wants to speak with you a minute. She's still in the meeting room." He said, pointing back towards the door he had just walked out of.

"Did she say what for?"

"Nope. Just that she wanted me to see if you'd already left."

She stared at the doorway to the meeting room for a long moment, wondering what Regina would want with her that couldn't wait until later. Giving a glance to her roommate, she found that Mary Margaret was still looking at her with _that_ look, the one that made Emma feel like the brunette could read her every thought. With a sheepish grin, she said, "I'll be back in a minute," and headed towards the door to the hall.

When she entered the room, she noticed that Regina was talking with some townsperson, a woman that was only vaguely familiar to Emma. She decided to hang back by the door until Regina was free, sticking her sweating hands in the pockets of her jacket. A few uneventful moments passed before Regina glanced in her direction, their eyes locking. Emma's breath hitched in her throat. Regina gave her a slight nod then turned back to the woman, still ranting away about some problem she was having with the town's mailman.

She watched in admiration as Regina soothed the woman's nerves, assuring her that the matter would be taken care of by herself personally. Emma knew the woman's problem was beneath Regina's office, but still Regina found it important to take care of it herself. After the woman had come down the aisle, passing Emma with a relieved grin, Emma looked across the room where Regina was now standing alone.

Her bootsteps echoed throughout the empty room as she walked towards Regina, brown eyes watching her carefully. When she was a few paces away, she finally broke the silence. "You wanted to see me, Madam Mayor?"

A smirk spread across Regina's lips at the title. "Yes I did... _Deputy_." Her eyes held a hint of teasing in them. "I was wondering if you had any plans for tonight?"

Emma's heart skipped a beat. Regina was asking what her plans were on a Friday night. Their old date night. "Um... no, I don't."

"Great. Then what do you think about taking Henry overnight?"

She studied the look on Regina's face, trying to figure out what exactly was going on. "Like... as a sleepover?"

It almost looked as though Regina wanted to laugh at her words, an amused grin spreading across her lips, but she only answered, "yes, Miss Swan, a sleepover."

"Um... yeah, I- I'd love that. Thanks." Emma took in a deep breath and tried to steady her nerves, her heartbeat racing in her chest. Shaking her head, she knew better than to think that Regina wanted to spend time with her. Especially like _that_.

"Great. I've spoken with the Sheriff and he's agreed to give you the afternoon off so you can pick Henry up from school."

"Oh. Ok. Great." She was stunned that Regina would've already arranged everything for her. The whole thing seemed so out of left field, she wasn't really sure how to react. Or why it was happening. "Do you have plans tonight or something?"

Regina stared at her for a long moment unmoving. "No. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know, this whole thing just seems kind of sudden, like you had something come up tonight and you needed someone to watch Henry."

Regina's face fell for a moment before she schooled her features back into place, her earlier smile now noticeably absent. "No. I simply thought that the two of you would enjoy spending a night together. That was all." Regina looked down to her desk and started shuffling through some papers, organizing her notes from the day's meeting.

"Oh." Emma didn't know what to say, but she knew that somewhere along the line she had fucked up again. Regina was trying to do a nice thing for her, and she had basically implied that the only reason Regina was doing it was because Regina was thinking of herself. _Shit_. "Regina?"

"Hm?" She asked without looking up.

Emma took a few steps closer to Regina's desk, wanting more than anything to have Regina's full attention again. "Thank you for this- for tonight. I really appreciate you letting me spend more time with Henry."

"You're welcome." Regina glanced up for a second, giving Emma a forced smile, then turned her gaze back to her paperwork.

"Regina?"

"Yes?"

The hint of irritation in Regina's voice told her that she had to get this right, that she had to get that smile back and now. She had an idea that could be a lot of fun for the three of them, but Henry was probably gonna kill her for it. "You'll be up tomorrow morning at eight?"

Brown eyes shot up to meet green. "Yes... Why?"

She almost laughed at the look of suspicion on Regina's face, as though Regina thought her intentions were anything but honorable. "Henry and I are going to bring you breakfast."

An eyebrow rose in question. "_You_ and _Henry_ are going to get up at eight o'clock on a Saturday morning?" She asked in disbelief. They both knew that Emma and Henry weren't morning people, especially when the morning in question was on a weekend. The idea of them willingly getting up so early was pretty much ridiculous.

"Yes."

Regina let out a chuckle, the corners of her lips turning upwards. "I'll believe _that_ when I see it."

"Then you'll believe it tomorrow. We'll be at the house at eight-thirty." She gave Regina a smug grin and nodded once at the mayor. "I'll see you then." She took a step backwards and headed towards the door.

"Deputy."

Regina's voice halted her movements. She turned back around to find Regina staring at her. "Yeah?"

With a hint of a smile, Regina said, "if you're not at the house by nine, I'm fixing my own breakfast."

"Trust me, _Madam Mayor_," she smirked at the title, "we'll be there." Without waiting for a response, she turned on her heel and walked purposefully out of the room, feeling Regina's gaze follow her with each step.

...

It was nearing midnight, but she still wasn't asleep. She had given Henry her bed for the night and had taken over the couch in the living room for herself. It was comfortable, but she still couldn't relax enough to drift off to sleep. She kept replaying the evening's events with Henry over and over again in her mind. Something didn't feel right, but she couldn't put her finger on what it was.

A muffled noise broke through her thoughts. Glancing up towards the second floor, she wondered if it was Henry. After a few moments of silence, listening carefully for any more disturbances, she settled back into the couch. It must've been the pipes again. Living in an old building had its perks- cheaper rent, hardwood floors, the ability to not feel guilty when something scratches said hardwood floors- but there was definitely a downside.

Another noise came from upstairs. A noise that was definitely not the pipes. She threw the blankets off and quickly headed towards the stairs. Quietly climbing them two at a time, she did her best not to wake her roommate. When she peeked into her bedroom, she found that the bed was empty. She pushed the door open further and came face to face with her son.

"Henry?" She could hear the clear worry in her tone and cringed. The last thing she wanted was to make him feel anxious. She needed to stay as close to normal for his sake. Studying the look on his face, she asked, "what are you doing up? Is something wrong?"

He stared at her for a long moment then nodded. "I can't sleep."

She had put him to bed three hours ago. She thought for sure he would've been asleep by now. "Why not?"

"I keep thinking about mom."

She didn't know what answer she had been expecting, but it sure as hell didn't have anything to do with Regina. "What about her?" Kneeling on the floor, she took one of his hands in her own.

"I keep wondering if she's okay. She hasn't been alone in that house since we moved here."

"I'm sure that's not true. Haven't you had sleepovers with your friends before?"

He studied her uncertainly. "I don't really have any friends."

She felt her heart break at the look in his eyes. He really was her kid, right down to her anti-social tendencies. She didn't know what to say, so she asked the only thing that came to mind. "So then what do you want to do?"

"I think I wanna go home," he answered softly, as though he was afraid of her response.

She squeezed his hand in a small attempt to comfort him. Giving him an understanding smile, she nodded. "Then I'll call your mom and let her know we're coming. You get your things together and meet me downstairs, ok?"

"Okay." She brushed his hair out of his eyes as she stood up. Even though she wanted him to stay the rest of the night, she couldn't help but be proud at how much he was trying to take care of Regina. When she was halfway into the hall, she heard from behind her, "mama?"

Looking towards her son, she asked, "yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

The regret in his eyes made her chest ache. He really was growing up into a great kid. "There's nothing to be sorry for. I get why you wanna go home, and I don't blame you for it. You're just doing what you have to do, ok?"

"Ok."

She gave him a smile that was quickly returned. "I'll see you downstairs." He nodded and turned towards his bag on the ground. She quietly headed down to the ground floor of the apartment. She slipped on a pair of shoes then grabbed her car keys and cell phone off the kitchen table and headed out into the hallway. She left the door to the apartment open halfway and leaned against the opposite wall. Dialing the house's number, she slowly took in a deep breath and waited.

Halfway through the fourth ring, the call was picked up. "Hello?" A groggy voice answered.

Regina had been sleeping. Emma felt a wave of relief hit her. Regina couldn't have been too worried about Henry if she had already managed to fall asleep. "Regina, it's me."

"Emma? What's going on? Is Henry okay?"

"He's fine." She said immediately, wanting to put Regina's mind at ease. "Everything's alright, but he wants to come home, so I'm gonna bring him by in about ten minutes. Is that okay?"

There was a pause and a bit of shuffling on the other end of the line before Regina answered, "of course it is, but why does he want to come home?"

She chewed on her bottom lip, thinking carefully over her answer. The truth wasn't going to do, but she hated to lie to Regina. Closing her eyes, she answered, "I think he just wants to be home right now. He isn't really upset, but I think he just wants to be in his room and in his bed."

There was silence on the other end of the line. "Alright. I'll see you in a few minutes then."

"Ok. Bye."

"Bye."

She hung up the phone and opened her eyes to find Henry standing in the doorway, studying her carefully. "You ready to go, buddy?"

"Yeah." He moved out into the hallway and waited for her to lock the door behind him.

The ride back to the house was silent. With Henry's attention focused out the passenger's side window, Emma kept thinking about the look on his face when she first found him pacing in her room. He was genuinely worried about Regina, that much was clear, but she couldn't figure out why. Everything had been going so well with Regina lately. They had been getting along for nearly two months now, seeing each other on a regular basis, and Emma hadn't noticed that anything seemed particularly wrong with Regina. Henry's worry seemed to be unwarranted now.

When they turned onto Mifflin Street, she decided she couldn't let him go back to Regina's house without saying something. "Things have been better with your mom lately, haven't they?"

He looked over to her and shrugged. "I guess so."

"Is there anything specific that you're worried about? Anything happen lately with her?"

"No."

She didn't want to pry into Regina's life, especially didn't want to ask when the last time Henry had heard her crying was, but she would've given anything to know the answer. Instead, she forced a smile at her son as she pulled up to the house. Parking on the street, she looked up to the house just in time to see the front door open and Regina appear in the doorway, tightening her robe around her pajamas.

As Emma got out of her car, she tried not to think too hard about their situation. Henry was probably just missing his mom more than anything. There was nothing from Regina lately that had made it seem like there was anything to worry about. She didn't think there were any signs that she was missing. Following Henry up the sidewalk to the house, she clearly saw the concern shining in Regina's eyes. Henry took the steps up the porch and stopped in front of his mom. "Hi."

"Hello, sweetheart," she said softly. "How about you tell mama goodnight and head upstairs? I'll be up in a minute to tuck you in, alright?"

"Ok." He answered. Turning towards Emma, he gave her a weak smile. "Thanks for tonight. I had a lot of fun."

She grinned at him and nodded. "I did too, buddy. Get some sleep."

"Ok. Night."

"Goodnight." She watched as he disappeared up the stairs then turned her attention back to Regina. There was an uncertainty in the brunette's eyes that didn't sit well with Emma. She offered Regina a cautious smile and shrugged. "I guess tonight just wasn't the right night."

"I guess not." It looked as though Regina wanted to say more, but she only continued to stare at Emma.

"Well... have a good night." Emma said, taking a step backwards.

"Emma, wait." Green eyes met brown again. Regina opened her mouth slightly then closed it quickly again. She took a few steps closer, stopping at the end of the portico. A few moments passed before she said, "I'm sorry for this. I really thought that tonight would be great for the two of you."

"It was." Emma said quickly, wanting to erase the pained look in Regina's eyes. "There's nothing to be sorry for, ok? We had a blast tonight. And this-" she motioned towards the house, "-this is just Henry being a normal ten year old." She gave Regina a smile, then added, "I can't blame him for wanting to come home. Especially when his home is with you." She tried to ignore the surprise in Regina's eyes and quickly added, "well, you should go- you know, get Henry to sleep."

Regina stood still, her eyes locked on Emma's. Slowly, she took the steps down to the sidewalk, stopping an arm's length away from where Emma was standing. Studying the look in her eyes, she gave Emma a slight smile. "You asked me to forgive you once... when you first came back to town," Regina said quietly, a slight tremble in her voice. "Do you remember that?"

Emma smiled at the question. "Of course I do."

"I want you to know that I have. I forgive you for everything... and I hope that you can forgive me, too. You aren't the only one who's made mistakes."

She studied the look in Regina's eyes, finding nothing but the utmost sincerity there. "There isn't anything I need to forgive you for, Regina, but I'm glad to hear that you've forgiven me. And I just... I promise you, I won't let you down again."

"I know that you won't."

She felt the grin break out onto her face. Hearing that Regina believed in her again, her heart swelled. This was her chance, the moment that she felt like she had been waiting forever for. "Thank you," she whispered.

With a nod, Regina pulled back, taking a step closer to the house. "I should go, get Henry to bed."

"Yeah, you should."

Regina gave her one last smile, saying softly, "goodnight, Emma."

"Night, Regina."

Emma watched as Regina turned away, taking the steps up to the portico and into the house. When the front door was closed, Emma looked up to the second story to find that Henry was watching her from his bedroom window. She held up her hand in a wave causing him to do the same. A few moments passed before he disappeared into his bedroom. She turned and headed back to her car, feeling as though her world had shifted ever so slightly on its axis.

...

Grabbing the takeout bag from the passenger's seat, Emma climbed out of her bug with a yawn and started towards Regina's front door. It was eight forty-two, twelve minutes later than she had wanted to show up, but it was close enough. She didn't know if Regina would still be expecting her for breakfast- the pessimist in her had no doubt that Regina was about to get a big surprise- but after what happened when she dropped Henry off the night before, she really wanted to see Regina again. She just hoped Regina felt the same way.

She knew Henry would still be in bed for the next few hours, so that meant that it would just be her and Regina for breakfast. Alone. She swallowed nervously and lifted her hand to knock on the front door. The knock was barely audible, and she almost chuckled at how pathetic she felt. She could do this. She and Regina were on great terms now. They could have breakfast alone together without it being too weird. At least she hoped they could. She brought her hand back and rapped loudly on the door.

A few moments passed before she heard the lock click. She took in a deep breath as the door swung open. Regina's eyes met her own, then drifted down to the bag of food in Emma's hands. A smile crossed her lips. Emma's heart skipped a beat.

Forcing herself to break the silence first, Emma said, "I hope you haven't eaten already." She knew the look on her face told Regina just how uncertain she was of being there, but Regina's smile only grew.

"I haven't, actually. Come in."

Emma passed Regina on her way into the house and took the stairs further into the foyer. Turning around, she watched as Regina climbed up to meet her, feet bare, wearing yoga pants and a simple white blouse. She looked relaxed, something that Emma was grateful to see. Their eyes met causing both women to smile.

"How about you head into the dining room? I'll grab us some silverware from the kitchen."

"Works for me." Emma started towards the dining room and dropped the takeout bag on the table, hearing Regina disappear into the kitchen behind her. Running her fingers through her hair nervously, she mentally congratulated herself on getting into the house without looking like an idiot. Now if she could just get through breakfast the same way, she would consider the morning a success. Pulling out the food containers, she opened each to check their contents then set them out on the table at the two nearest placemats.

She heard the door to the kitchen swing open and Regina joined her at the table. A mug of steaming coffee was set down in front of her along with a fork and a knife. She glanced up to her ex as Regina eyed the to-go containers. "Which one's mine?"

"That one." Emma pointed to her left. After Regina examined the contents of the box, she looked up to her in question. Emma felt her stomach drop. Even though it had been four years since the two of them had last eaten together at Granny's, she had thought that she remembered what Regina liked from the diner. But apparently she was wrong. "I didn't get the right thing."

Regina shook her head. "No, you did... I don't know how you remembered, but thank you."

The smile that she gave Regina was probably a little too exuberant but she didn't care. "You're welcome."

Regina settled down into her chair and took a sip of her coffee. When Emma remained standing, she glanced up to the blonde in question. "What's wrong?"

"No plates?" Emma asked suspiciously. "You're actually going to eat out of _styrofoam_?" For a moment she was terrified that Regina was going to take her question the wrong way, but the brunette only gave her a coy smile.

"I am. I feel like living on the wild side this morning."

Emma chuckled and slid into her own chair. "Well, in that case, maybe after we eat, we can go rearrange the food in the pantry, make things really interesting."

"That sounds like an excellent idea."

Emma stared at Regina, brown eyes holding her gaze with confidence. Every time Regina gave her a smile, she felt things that she hadn't felt in years, things that no one else had ever made her feel. She forced herself to look away, back down towards her breakfast. A few minutes went by in silence as they started on their food. Emma thought back to the evening before, how things with Regina were starting to feel like they used to, before everything fell apart. They felt like a family again, something that Emma had sorely missed the last four years. With a thought to the sleeping boy upstairs, she asked, "did Henry settle down okay last night?"

Regina nodded and swallowed her food. "He was nearly asleep when I went up to him."

"Good."

Her brow crinkled in question. "Why? Were you worried about him?"

"No." Emma answered firmly, wanting to erase any concerns Regina might've had brewing in her head. "Everything really did go fine last night. I just think he couldn't get comfortable enough to settle down. He hasn't really spent any time in my bedroom, so his surroundings weren't familiar at all."

"That makes sense... But we'll have to try another sleepover again sometime soon."

Emma smiled at that. "Absolutely."

"After all, per the orders of the custody agreement, you are supposed to get Henry every other weekend. You fought hard enough for them..." Regina froze suddenly, her eyes darkening.

Emma felt her stomach churn at the mention of the document. She could tell by the look on Regina's face that she was feeling the same way, the memories of their bitter divorce bubbling to the surface. The disputes over the custody agreement had been some of the worst moments of the whole ordeal, leaving both women with deep emotional scars.

Regina's eyes met hers, the same trepidation in them that Emma felt in her chest. Without a thought, Emma reached over and covered Regina's hand with her own, wanting nothing more than to give her comfort. "The past is in the past, right?"

Regina's gaze lingered where Emma's skin touched hers for the longest time, and Emma had to fight herself not to pull back. She had made the move and she was committed to it, no matter how much it frightened her to be so exposed again. When brown eyes met her own, she knew that she had done the right thing. Regina looked less troubled, almost relieved. Softly, Regina echoed, "right."

Emma held her gaze for what felt like minutes. Thinking through her next words carefully, she said, "we've got a lot to work through still, I know that, but we're not the same people we were four years ago. I've done a lot of growing up since then. I'm not gonna disappoint you again." She knew she'd already made the same promise to Regina the night before, but she felt like it needed to be repeated then, when the custody battle was fresh on their minds.

"Emma..."

With the sudden uncertainty in Regina's eyes, Emma started to withdraw her hand, sure that she had misstepped, gotten too familiar too soon. But when her hand was halfway back to her side of the table, Regina reached up and wrapped her fingers around it, bringing their linked hands back down to the table again. Emma's heart pounded furiously in her chest. She hadn't shared anything so intimate with Regina in nearly five years.

"The past is in the past." Regina said softly, her gaze turning towards where their hands lay on the table. "We _both_ made mistakes... we both hurt each other... but now, we're starting over." Emma watched Regina struggle with what was coming next. When brown eyes met her own again, she felt her heart stop. Regina said, "our future isn't going to look like our past... We're going to be fine."

Taking in a deep breath, Emma nodded. "I know." And she did know. Even though they had spent so many years apart, the last memories of their relationship bitter and spiteful, it wasn't what defined their relationship now. They had settled into something that was so similar to the beginnings of their relationship, it almost made Emma ache with longing to just start over, go back to where it all began and do everything better.

Regina withdrew her hand suddenly, giving Emma a gentle smile. "Well..."

Emma chuckled. "It's probably way too early in the morning to be talking about that kind of stuff, huh?"

"Especially after what happened last night- how late we all were awake."

"And the early morning rise for some of us."

Regina nodded, a grin on her lips. "That too."

"You know, I'm really glad that we're doing this- breakfast, I mean. I almost didn't come, cause I figured you'd probably eaten already and then I would be there on your doorstep with a bag of food looking like an idiot-" she stopped abruptly, knowing she'd said too much. Giving Regina a self-conscious smile, she tried to calm the butterflies fluttering away in her stomach.

The brunette held her gaze for a long moment. "I was actually waiting until nine to eat breakfast... just in case you did come." Regina said, giving her the same self-conscious smile back.

"You were?" She asked, genuinely surprised that Regina would wait for her. They hadn't talked about breakfast other than the promise Emma had made after the City Council meeting. There was no reason for Regina to suspect that she was going to show up that morning alone.

"I was. For a little while, I thought that I was crazy for waiting, that you weren't going to show up because Henry hadn't stayed the night with you, but I hoped that you would... I wanted you to."

Emma beamed back at Regina, the butterflies fluttering away at full force, saying softly, "I'm really glad to hear that."

"Do you have plans for the day?" Regina asked suddenly, the change in topics catching Emma off guard.

"Um, no, I don't."

"Then how about you stay? We can do something special with Henry today, go to the movies or maybe go to the park for a picnic. This is probably the last warm Saturday we'll have until spring comes. We should take advantage of it."

"That sounds perfect."

She held Regina's gaze as the brunette continued to stare at her, a warm smile on her lips. It had been five years since their relationship had been this comfortable, five years since Regina had last seemed so relaxed in her presence. She didn't know where their relationship was headed. She was reluctant to think that they would ever be together again, though there was no denying that she wanted them to be. But as Regina's gaze turned back to her food, resuming her meal in silence, Emma knew that they were going to be alright. No matter what happened, they would find a way to get through it together.


End file.
